¦ . ¦ YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY WITH HICKS PASHA Capt Massey. Major Farquhar. Major Warner. Sergt. Brady, R.H.A. Capt. Evans. Capt. Forestier {Hicks' Orderly.) {Interpreter?) Walker. Col. Hon. J. Colborne. Major Martin. Hicks Pasha. De Coetlogon Pasha. WITH HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN BEING AN ACCOUNT OF THE SENAAR CAMPAIGN IN 1883 COLONEL THE HON. J. COLBORNE formerly of the 60th (king's royal rifles) and latterly in thb service of his highness the khedive WITH A FRONTISPIECE SECOND EDITION LONDON, SMITH, ELDER, & CO., 15 WATERLOO PLACE 1885 [All rights reserved'} EDITOR'S PREFACE. If any apology were needed for the production of this little book, one might be found in the fact that the interest of mankind is just now centred in that mys terious Soudan country which is herein treated of. The very title of the work will probably secure for it an attentive perusal from many thousands of sympathetic English men and women who were so indescribably shocked last year to hear of the terrible ending of Hicks Pasha's expedition. The author, like many another officer on active service, found moments now and then in which, amidst the turmoil of a camp, he could give the public at home an account of the impressions made upon him during the passing hour. In the following pages will be found sundry re prints of interesting communications made to various journals, under such circumstances, which in spite of the inconvenience of occasional repetition, the editor EDITOR'S PREFACE. has thought it well to incorporate with the central narrative. The accident that Colonel Colborne is at the present time in Egypt with the expedition of Lord Wolseley, while the editor to whose hands the task of ' seeing the book through the press ' has been con fided is in London, must be the excuse for all short comings. A compiler not being able to confer with his principal when any little ambiguity may arise easily falls into error. This is mentioned so that the reader may know that the errors in the present book are not to be put down to the author's account, but to that of THE EDITOR. London: October 1 881. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGK We are encouraged — The Khedive's politeness — How the Israelites crossed the Bed Sea — Interesting waters — A Suakin palace — Coral caverns— Cheap marketing — How the Mahdi fights 1 CHAPTEE II. Camels — Their amiable nature ! — Comfortable locomotion — A crupper in the desert — How long the ship of the desert goes without water 19 CHAPTER III. En route to Berber — The Shadow of the Eock — Desolation — Wei in the desert — An oasis — Starlight — A simoom — A Hassar sheik — Abdel Gades — Old Father Nile — Contented slaves . 30 CHAPTER IV. Berber and its inhabitants — The call for ' fiddlers three ' — Berbereen ladies— False rumours 57 CONTENTS. CHAPTER V. PAGE The beauties of the Nile — An Arab wedding — Sakeeyehs — Marriage sports — A handsome bridegroom — The Pyramids of Meroe 64 CHAPTER VI. From Matumma to Khartoum — A town without streets — In verdure elad^' The Thirsty,' and ' the Thirsty Quenched ' — How Arabs treat steam engines 71 CHAPTER VII. Khartoum — A grand review ! — The town and its population — We commence business and astonish the natives — The ubiquitous bakal — Pretty market girls . 78 CHAPTER VIII. Daily life at Khartoum — The Guardsman does not care about a mule mount — The tam-tam's call to dine — Poor O'Donovan — Bashi-Bazouk ' conveyancing ' — The only good boy in the regiment — A grand banquet to the General . . . .86 CHAPTER IX. From Khartoum to Kawa — We start for the field— A lovely mirage — The feather-weight Ambatch — Sunset on the Nile — The traitor pasha whom Gordon afterwards shot — Within touch of the foe 97 CHAPTER X. We prepare for fighting — Two Englishmen to command three thousand troops— News of the Mahdi — The ruins of Kawa . 108 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XI. PAGE Our daily life in Kawa — A deserted village — Crocodiles' eggs for breakfast — A violet sky — Preserved sentries — Nordenfeldting bullocks 114 CHAPTER XII. We prepare to advance on Jebel-Ain — General Hicks's tact — A gallows by moonlight 125 CHAPTER XIII. On the march through the ' wait-a-bit ' bush — Eighty horses con demned out of a hundred — Night made hideous— A natural lawn 129 CHAPTER XIV. A false alarm — Coolness of the troops — Sharp reproof to muti nous officers (' Don't do it again ') — Anxious moments — First sight of the enemy 135 CHAPTER XV. The last of the Crusaders — A seventeen-stone apparition — Soudanese Arab descendants of the Saracens — The chivalry of our foes , . . . 142 CHAPTER XVI. The battle of Marabia— A gallant attack and murderous defence —Will they break the square ?— Horrible slaughter- Arab fanaticism— Victory .„,... . 14 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XVII. PAGE Mahomedaii martyr — Savage rejoicing of our troops— Poor old Frank Vizetelly — All the way from Suakin on foot — Projected walk through the whole of Africa 163 CHAPTER XVIII. On the march again — Flying shots — A deserted woman — Killing the wounded — Vitality of the Arabs — A halt at Abow-Goumeh 170 CHAPTER XIX. Dreadful adventure of a young English officer — Lost in the desert — Two whole days without water — Why should we both die? — Magnificent endurance— Grave actually dug for the lost officer — Eescue I . 175 CHAPTER XX. The Island of Abba — Deserted dockyards — Nile boats — Catching the enemy on the water— Welcome capture of provisions . 183 CHAPTER XXI. Jebel-Ain the goal of the expedition — Capture of a spy — A grand natural zoological garden— The hippopotamus, his mission- Some coursing with a stray greyhound 187 CHAPTER XXII. Best in a picturesque camp— Author taken ill— The Bed Bock of Jebel-Ain— Nocturnal soothing music, the roaring of many lions— The Seroot fly— Shillook fishermen— A hippopotamus hunt— Natural gardens of the Nile 190 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXIII. PAGE Bcturn to Khartoum on a month's sick leave — The plucky little garrison of Duem — Gallant repulse of the Mahdi's troops with great slaughter 202 CHAPTER XXIV. Besults of the campaign — The dauntless barbarians — Our fleet — The palm groves of Khartoum — Our steamboat Kaptdn — Morning gallops — Khartoum trade — A large fish — Dancing girls — Mahomedan correspondence — A despatch from Said Pasha 206 CHAPTER XXV. Author ordered six months' forced leave — Bide through the desert from Berber to Suakin — The Sixth Cataract — A terrible tragedy — The battle of Bara — The Omarab mountains — Turkish dinner etiquette — Bide in an angareb — Hairdressing extraordinary 227 CHAPTER XXVI. Bide through the desert continued — A death-dealing mirage — Wading through sand-mounds — A delicious draught — Granite boulders— A little Eden 243 CHAPTER XXVII. Bide continued — A fearful storm—' The sea, the sea ! '—Coral- built Suakin — The best route to reach Gordon . . .25 CHAPTER XXVIII. General capabilities of the country traversed during the campaign —Zoological wealth — Fertility of soil — Numerous herds— The greyhound originally a Soudanese — Botanical variety — water supply 263 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXIX. PAGE Suez and Cairo — Pleasant days — Meeting with old friends — Shepheard's — Society in the Capital — Gossiping proclivities . 278 CHAPTER XXX. Anxious waiting for news — False rumours — The dreadful intelli gence at last — Hicks with entire army annihilated — Author's reflection on the fearful tidings — The end .... 286 WITH HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER I. FROM CAIRO TO STJAKIN. Then farewell home and farewell friend, Adieu each tender tie ! Besolved we mingle in the tide Where charging squadrons furious ride To conquer or to die. Wu rumbled slowly out of the Cairo Railway Station at half-past eleven on the morning of February 7, 1883. Sicubi fata vocant.' It was a bright, crisp, sunny Egyptian winter's day, and the date-palms on the banks of the Ismailiyeh Canal showed the ashy white under-surface of their graceful fronds in tremulous movement, as they were caressed by a gentle breeze from the Delta. Our party consisted, in addition to General Hicks Wheresoever the fates may call. 2 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. Pasha, of Farquhar, De Coetlogon, Massey, Martin, Warner, Evans, Rosenberg (our surgeon), and myself. Forrestier Walker was left behind to bring on the Gatlings. We were all in high spirits, and eagerly looking forward to the campaign. Three only of that cheerful company returned from the Soudan. Little did we dream, as we indulged in half-jesting speculations as to our lot in the far interior, of the dire fate in store for most of us. A goodly throng of friends came to the station to wish us God-speed. Among them were Baker Pasha, and his brother, Sir Samuel Baker. Our departure was so hurried that we had not time to make all the preparations for our journey which a longer notice would have allowed us to do. These deficiencies in our kit made themselves appa rent later on, in the desert. One of us bewailed the absence of cartridges, or the possession of the wrong number ; another found himself minus some essential article of domestic utility or personal comfort. We had no time to order uniforms, so we had to provide ourselves with the grey serge issued to Tommy Atkins in Egypt, and Karkee jackets, which were hurriedly trimmed with gold lace, denoting our re spective ranks. WE ARE ENCOURAGED. Gloomy forebodings anent our enterprise were freely indulged in at Cairo. I had dined the previous evening with my old corps, the 60th (King's Royal Rifles), and among other cheery items of advice, the importance of pro curing a good horse was impressed upon me, as our men were sure either to bolt or turn against us. Exercise of forethought in this particular I proved afterwards, at the battle of Marabia, to be unnecessary, whatever may have subsequently befallen my gallant companions in arms at the fatal close of the campaign. Entrust thy fortune to the Power above. On the day before our departure we were presented to the Khedive, having previously received our com missions in the ante-chamber. The appointments were as follows : — Colonels, Colborne and De Coetlogon ; Majors, Martin and Farquhar ; Captains, Massey, Warner, and Forrestier Walker ; Surgeon, Rosenberg ; Interpreter, Evans (with honorary rank of Captain). There had been some difficulty about our taking Mr. Evans with us. His Highness the Khedive suggested the employment of one of his own officers in the capacity of interpreter. General Hicks, how ever, represented to His Highness the desirability of B 2 4 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. employing Mr. Evans, and consequently he received his commission, to our great satisfaction. Poor Evans did us excellent service. He had previously visited the Soudan, and had acquired, during a long residence in the Hedjaz, a knowledge of Arabic, equally fluent and far more accurate than that possessed by the Levantines, who speak the jargons of Egypt and Syria. In addition to his value as a linguist, and his readiness in placing himself en rapport with the natives, he was a cheerful and indefatigable cam paigner, and an excellent comrade. Peace to his manes ! The forethought of Hicks in pressing for an English interpreter has since been justified. The Levantine and Syrian interpreters employed with General Graham gave striking demonstration of their belief in the old maxim that ' discretion is the better part of valour.' They bolted. To fill these posts it is imperative to have Englishmen with a know ledge of Arabic, whom you may trust for integrity, courage, and truthfulness. The following is a translation of my commission : — ' To the most honourable man, to the person who is accomplished in military knowledge, we give the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel Colborne Bey, 4th class. It has pleased us to give the rank of Colonel Bey, who THE KHEDIVE'S POLITENESS. 5 has given us all satisfaction regarding his military knowledge.' His Highness received us with great courtesy, and whilst we were imbibing the inevitable coffee, told us in fluent English he was glad to have so fine a body of officers in his service. It is to be hoped the reader will not be sarcastic and attribute this to Oriental politeness. He afterwards addressed a few remarks to General Hicks, pithy and to the point. Among other things he urged the importance of taking precautions to prevent the circulation of false news. The train stopped for a few minutes at Tel-el- Kebir, and we were enabled to have a last look at the memorable trenches.1 Shortly afterwards we passed another spot, Tel-el-Mahuta, which will be fresh in the memory of those who took part in the campaign of 1882, but possessing a perennial and immeasurably wider interest for the human race as the site of Barneses, the point of departure of the children of Israel from Egypt. Doctors all seem to agree upon this, however much they may differ as to the route subsequently followed. At Suez we all dined together at the ' Suez,' the ultima thule of hotels on this side of the line, as far 1 The new cemetery for the fallen is close to the station. There is also a small locanda for the refreshment of pilgrims. 6 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. as Africa is concerned. An admirably managed establishment is this hotel, reflecting equal credit upon the Peninsular and Oriental Company and upon its excellent manager. It was the last time most of us dined in a hotel. In the old days of the Overland Route, before the cutting of the Canal, this was a right glorious little place of rendezvous. Motley groups of out going and home-coming Anglo-Indians, grass-widows, and young ladies on their way to the happy fields of husband-hunting, were here thrown together in the racial centre of the globe, if the expression may be allowed, since Egypt is the point of contact of the Aryan, Semitic, and Hamitic races. The Khedivial steamer ' Jafferieh ' awaited us at Suez, and as General Hicks stepped on board the crew manned yards and saluted us with the thrice repeated cry, ' Effendimiz chok yasha.' As we steamed down the Gulf of Suez, the deep violet-toned range of the rugged Jebel Attakah made a wild and beautiful sky-line. I could not help com paring this stern, forbidding rencontre of Asia, wild and desolate, and Africa, dark and lowering, with the place of meeting of Asia and Europe. On the Bosphorus, the two continents might be HOW THE ISRAELITES CROSSED THE SEA. 7 imagined members of a mutual admiration society, and strive to outvie each other in smiles. Here it is a scowl on the one hand and a frown on the other. It would be out of place to enter on a disquisition as to the rival probabilities of the theories touching the precise point of passage of the Israelites, or to adduce arguments for or against the Sirbonic Lake theory revived of late years by Brugsch. A process of reasoning, however ingenious, tending to prove what is certainly improbable on the face of it, is more than counterbalanced by tradition, when tradition is on the side of probability. So I am content to accept tradition, and to believe, as our prow cleaves the Suez Sea, as the Arabs call the Gulf, that it was here, at its head, that Moses led forth the people into the wilderness. Before the construction of the Canal, caravans frequently crossed at low tide. It may be supposed that the Egyptians, in hot pursuit, reached the spot before the tide had begun to flow. A gale from the south-west would heap up the incoming flood with fearful rapidity, so that it ' covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them.' The account in Exodus is plain enough. They did not go ' through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near,' HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. but ' they were led through the way of the wilderness of the Red Sea.' The succinct account in Numbers — ' And the children of Israel removed from Rameses, and pitched in Succoth. And they departed from Succoth, and pitched in Etham, which is in the edge of the wilder ness. And they removed from Etham, and turned again unto Pi-hahiroth, which is before Baal- zephon : and they pitched before Migdol. And they departed from before Pi-hahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness ' — clearly indicates that they turned south, doubtless to avoid the frontier forts, which extended along the line followed by the present Canal. Baal-zephon is the present Jebel Attakeh, which frowns over the Gulf of Suez. Here the Phoenician sailors used to sacrifice to Baal-zephon — the North Wind — upon which they depended for the home-coming of their rich argosies from the Indian Ocean. Since Baal-zephon is so distinctly mentioned, it is hard to see what can be adduced in support of the Sirbonic Lake theory. We passed Ayun Moussa (the springs of Moses) on our left, a few miles from Suez. The Arabs have it that here Moses drew water from the rock, and also say it is the place where he sweetened the bitter MOST INTERESTING WATERS. 9 waters. More probable was it that in this spot, fertile amid desolation, arose the sublime song of praise : — ' I will sing unto the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously : the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea.' A nucleus of great memories is attached to these green waters. The ships of Hiram and of Solomon, deep-laden with the gold of Ophir and the incense of Arabia, ploughed them on the way to the havens of Elath and Ezion-Geber ; hence the Phoenician sailors started on their circumnavigation of Africa ; the ships of the Hellenes and the Ptolemies glided over these depths, bearing the rich products of the looms of India and the pearls of the Persian Gulf. The associations which cling to the shore are in finitely more august. This is the hub, so to speak, of what Canon Farrar calls the three great volcanic centres of religion — Sinai, Jerusalem, and Mecca. Three days' steaming brought us to Suakin. We lay off all night, and at daylight threaded our way through the twenty miles of coral-girt channel which leads to the land-locked harbour. Recent events have brought Suakin so promi nently into notice, and it has been so amply illus trated by pen and pencil, that it is needless to describe it here in detail. 10 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. A glittering white town, built of madrepore, on an island, the houses look at a distance like the pierced walls of a fortress, giving it a mediaeval and castellated appearance — a middle distance of level plain backed by the serrated mountain ranges of the Nubian desert. Such was Suakin as we saw it, when we dropped anchor in the natural basin at the head of the creek up which we had steamed. We were received by the Governor with ' all the pomp and circumstance of glorious war ; ' which, on this occasion, consisted of the blowing of asthmatical trumpets which made * day hideous ' with their bray ing, and a feeble salute from a debilitated gun. The Khedivial Hymn was composed by Verdi. It is an attempt to combine the characteristics of Oriental with European music, and, to my idea, a failure ; a more execrable air it has never been my misfortune to hear. Again we heard the shout of salutation, ' Effendimiz chok yasha.' We were rowed ashore to the slow and stately swing of the ' Pasha stroke,' the men resting on their oars between each sweep. This leisurely mode of doing honour to dignitaries will be familiar to those who have seen the Sultan going to mosque in a state caique at Constantinople. We proceeded to the Governor's residence. His A PALACE IN SUAKIN. u Excellency took General Hicks by the hand and led him to the divan. This, to us, childish action is strict Oriental etiquette. We followed in our ranks, and were severally presented to the Pasha. After a few moments' silence, the salutations and inquiries after each others' health were again solemnly renewed. This is another sine qua non in the code of Eastern good manners. Then came the customary ceremonial of coffee and cigarettes, which duly accomplished, we were assigned quarters in spacious apartments in various stages of decay. Their dilapidated appear ance generally bore a ratio to their size. Low, broad divans, which had once been magnificent, lined the walls. The atmosphere was redolent of departed glories — and of rats. Massey and I shared one of these melancholy chambers, and here we first struck up a friendship which lasted until the end. We were conducted through long corridors and up flights of steps to a suite of chambers, one of which formed a mess-room. This was our first mess. We flattered ourselves that in two years, after a successful cam paign and hard-won honours, we should have a still more jovial mess in the same spot. Upon entering the Governor's palace, our gaze was attracted by a great yellow wooden lion over the gate way. I inquired if it was the emblem of the Soudan 12 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. as well as of England, and was informed that it was nothing more than the old figure-head of a ship called the 'Lion,' which had been broken up. Its position over the Palace-gate was merely owing to the asstheti- cism of a former Governor, and had no heraldic significance whatever. The first thing I did next morning was to bathe in the sea. I was afterwards informed that a shark had been seen hovering about the spot I had selected. He was considerate enough not to intrude upon my ablu tions. These shores are exceedingly interesting, and both on my going and returning I regretted that I could not linger a little to see more of the wonderful assort ment of strange creatures, from mammals to protozoa, which Nature has lavished here. To sit on rocks, to muse o'er flood and fell, To slowly trace the forest's shady scene, Where things that own not man's dominion dwell, And mortal foot hath ne'er, or rarely been ; To climb the trackless mountain all unseen, With the wild flock that never needs a fold. Byron, Childe Harold, n. 25. There is a double shore — the inner one being the true-land, and the outer one a surf-beaten coral-zone which exhibits few breaks. These gaps, naturalists tell us, are caused by the torrents which rush down from BEAUTIFUL CORAL CAVERNS. 13 the mountains at intervals, fresh water killing the coral polyps, and thus putting a stop to their archi tectural industry. The breaches in the reef always occur opposite the entrance of a valley. At ebb-tide the reef is a net-work of lagunes, made by the depres sions which the tide leaves, filled with water, in which waves a mass of delicate algse, amid the filaments of which dart shoals of small silvery fish (Myxus). On the inner shore grow thickets of the Avicennia officin alis. The green laurel-like leaves of this shrub contrast sharply with the sea and the desert on either hand. The outer edge of the reef, upon which the surf beats and gurgles in the coral caverns and abysses with which it is honey-combed, is fringed with rounded masses of meandrine coral with its brain-like convolu tions, and yellow, bluish, or rose-coloured madrepore. Fringed and carpeted with seaweed of a bright blue tint as seen through the water, among which flash and gleam fish whose hues— silver, gold, and azure- rival those of tropical birds, this region seems a sea- paradise. From such caverns the sirens of old might have lured the mariner to his destruction. It is the sea of ' The Tempest,' and of the imagination of our childhood. In the inner portion of the coral-zone grow the delicate branchlets of the Stylaphora coral, the 14 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. lovely cup star, and a wealth of sea urchins, ane mones, star-fish, and medusse. Not the least curious among this strange development of life is the strange sea cucumber (Holothuria). I did not try whether it would make a good salad. These kalaua, as the natives call the rock-pools, are Nature's curiosity-shops, where she seems to have gathered together her strangest and most fantastic creations. I should like to have caught a glimpse of the queer sun-fish, and still more extraordinary coffer-fish, which are preserved and sold at Suez to homeward- bound Anglo-Indians, but our caravan was ready, and we turned our backs upon the wonder-teeming shores of the Erythroean. But three of us were destined to look upon its waters again, — sic fata volebant. The following, which appeared in the 'Daily News,' gives some of my impressions at the time : — ' Suakin, Eastern Soudan : Feb. 11. 'At this moment the land-locked harbour of Suakin, frequently left without a hull floating in it, is full of animation. The " Damanhour," one of the Khedive's postal fleet, is sending on shore some 350 Bashi-Bazouks, mostly obtained from Roumelia. The Khedive, desiring to eliminate them from the gendarmerie service, has accepted their assistance in CHEAP MARKETING. 15 the Soudan; but, individually, it may be suggested they are great ruffians. Already they have com menced their purchases in the primitive bazaar of Souakin. The dealing is quite one-sided — that is to say, the unfortunate Arab tradesman supplies the article required, but seldom sees the colour of the Bashi-Bazouk's money in return. There is no doubt about these fellows being made of capital fighting material, and it is to be hoped that they will shortly give a good account of the Mahdi or False Prophet. ' In addition to the " Damanhour," the " Jafferia," a Khedivial yacht, is moored close to the landing- place of the Hotel du Soudan (a long way removed from Shepheard's), Bhe having had the honour of bearing to the African shores of the Red Sea General Hicks and his staff of officers, the pioneer force of 'English warriors who it is to be hoped will quickly bring about a settlement of the Soudanese question. ' Suakin, until recently the principal port for the exportation of slaves, is likely within a brief period to become noted for more legitimate enterprise. Al ready there are English merchants established in the place, and through their agency, gums, senna, ostrich feathers, coffee, &c, reach our shores. A French gentleman, M. Marquet, is erecting a gin- 1 6 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. ning-house for the preparation of cotton growing within fifteen leagues, and from his own statement he looks forward to retiring with a fortune in five or six years. Independently of these initiatory com mercial movements, some Englishmen are planning a line of railway from Suakin to Berber, the Nile port which communicates with Khartoum. Should this work be carried out, the capital of the Soudan would be reached in six days, instead of from fifteen to twenty, the time now taken by the desert route and river. Dromedaries, if swift, do the distance from Suakin to Berber in from eight to ten days, but fifteen is the average. There then remains five against the Nile stream, supposing the wind to be favourable. Under existing circumstances, reinforce ments for the Soudan will take a month between Suez and Khartoum. ' By the way, some of the residents have assured me that the Egyptian troops believe themselves to be powerless against the Mahdi, or False Prophet. They are firmly convinced that their rifles only " spit " water instead of bullets. With regard to the Mahdi himself, he seems at present to have it very much his own way. The Sultans of Kordofan and Darfour, besides other native potentates, keep him well supplied with men. They naturally desire to HOW THE MAHDI 'S TROOPS FIGHT. i7 see the Egyptians driven from the country, so that they may continue, as in former times, to kidnap their fellow-men, and they find the Mahdi an ad mirable standard-bearer to send to the front. The native army fighting under the so-called False Pro phet — the genuine man ought to come from the East instead of the West — are mostly armed with bows and lances. They usually advance to within a thousand yards of the Egyptian troops, who com mence potting away at this distance and continue the fire as long as there is a cartridge to burn. 0 Then, when all the ammunition is expended, the Mahdi harangues his men, and down they come in a swarm upon the Khedive's warriors, killing the few that make any effort to stand, and putting the remainder to ignominious flight. It is to be hoped that, with the advent of General Hicks and his followers, the fellah soldiers will be taught better manners in the field. We shall shortly have one great advantage. Captain Forrestier Walker, who has been left behind in Cairo, is expected almost immediately with a battery of Nordenfeldt guns. ' There is a report that the mountains in the neighbourhood of Suakin are swarming with the par tisans of the False Prophet. It is very certain that all the Arabs who enter the town are armed with 1 8 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. some kind of weapon or other. There are about 8,000 inhabitants here, of whom forty alone are Europeans, mostly Greeks. Following my own per sonal convictions, I believe that English volunteers are necessary to help the Khedive through this diffi culty with the False Prophet. The Soudan is a magnificent country, and it must never be allowed to relapse into slavery, but rather every effort must be made to back the Khedive's civilising influence. Here is an admirable field for adventurous English men, and the Prince to whom they may offer their services is to-day a firm and honest ally of England. In conclusion, let me observe that all Egyptian officers are hard at work learning English, and I am by force of circumstances becoming a colossal professor.' PROCRASTINATING THIEVES OF TIME. i9 CHAPTER II. CAMEL NATURE. Now for the wilderness. Btbon, Cain, Act in. Sc. I. We left Suakin on the evening of February 11. We were to have left at five in the morning. They told us the camels would be ready by that hour, and, not being initiated into the ways and manners of the people, we believed them. Soudanese camel-drivers always say they will be ready in the morning, but for some inscrutable reason they never start until the evening. We had sent on our Bashi-Bazouks, whose presence in Suakin was not a pleasant experience for the inhabitants. Bashi-Bazouk notions as to the distinc tion between mewm and tuum are confused, and their exuberance of spirits is apt to take an aggressive and minatory form. Our caravan consisted of 145 camels, all told. Each officer had, in addition to his hygeen, two c 2 20 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. ige camels. The rest were laden with stores and water. The water was carried in galvanised iron tanks. The leathern receptacles, called by the natives zemzemiyeh, give to the purest water a nauseous and detestable flavour. Passing through the bazaar and a dense mob of scantily-clothed and excited natives, we reached our ships of the desert, awaiting us patiently, if roaring and screaming are Eastern signs of patience. Except those among us who had ridden camels in India, I believe all felt a sensation of singular insecurity and liability to tumble off, but this feeling soon disap pears. Well, we take leave of our courteous friend the Governor. ' Laylek Saeeda ' (' May you pass a pleasant evening ') is the word, and we bid adieu to civilisation, With all the thirsting eye of Enterprise. Btbon, Corsair, i. 2. A parting salute is fired from an outlying redoubt and we plunge into the howling wilderness. Much has been said and sung about the camel. The long And patient swiftness of the desert ship, The helmless dromedary. Btbon, The Deformed Transformed, Part I. Sc. i. Someone says he is as unpoetical as much sung in verse. Whilst protesting against this, I must em- THE CAMEL'S AMIABILITY. phatically deny him the possession of many attributes with which he has been credited, foremost among them being his much-vaunted patience. A caravan of Asiatic camels, with their long, unshorn hair hanging from the swan-like neck, moving with graceful undulations at every stride, accompanied by the peculiar mellow tinkle of the strange bell hung on the leading camel — the caravan one meets with in Asia Minor — has something really idyllic about it. The hygeen, the African trotting dromedary, which is merely a camel of good blood trained to the trotting pace — and not a distinct species — is not a thing of beauty. Yet there is an old-world look about him, a depth of experience in his soft eyes, staring out from their cavernous sockets, which commands respect. There is a vein of dignity, too, which runs through everything he does. He is the servant, but not the friend, of man. Unlike the horse, he declines to be petted, and resents familiarity. When, upon my return to Suakin, penetrated with gratitude towards my hygeen, who had brought me safely through the glowing furnace heat of the desert in July, I attempted to pat him, he turned towards me with a savage growl. He had accomplished his mission, and needed no thanks. It is impossible to break through the barrier of reserve he interposes 22 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. between himself and his master. He belongs to another world than ours, and seems to be continually wrapt in the contemplation of things extra-mundane. His business in this life is to go right on, with his head poised horizontally, pointing, as the needle of the compass does to the pole, to the point whither he is bound. He is truly ' the ship of the desert.' There is an air about him which always gives one the idea that he is going somewhere a long way off. No near object seems to come within his range of vision. Once moving, he is, as a rule, quiet and happy, and it is in camp and when stopping that he exhibits his infirmities of character. He is essentially a traveller, and has never been more aptly defined than as a machine for traversing deserts. A marvellous though uncouth creation is he, with his queer hump, the many callosities on breast and joints, his broad, bearded upper lip, his pendent mobile under lip, and his wonderful, soft, elastic, spongy sole. Apart from its implied impugnment of Divine prescience, there is some reason in the saying of the Muslim, ' God the Lord Himself was greatly surprised at this creature He had made.' The most conspicuous virtues displayed by the camel are sedateness, strength, endurance, and steadi ness. His vices, the outcome of his unsympathetic THE CAMEL'S BABY. nature, are stubbornness and impatience. This latter defect is, however, chiefly confined to his life in camp, and rarely evinces itself on the march. The process of lading and unlading never takes place without manifest signs of disapproval on the part of the camel. His cargo is placed on the ground in two lots ; he is driven in between, and at once gives vent to his indignation by angry and discordant bellowings. This is a mere formal protest. He looks at the spot, mentally measuring it, as it were, and then begins the ponderous process of adjustment. First he falls on the callosities of his carpal joints, then the hind legs are brought into position, the fore legs are pushed out and bent, the fore-arm drawn inwards, the hinder limbs are drawn under the body, and he rests with a sulky look until required to rise, which he does with the same angry, guttural murmurs as before. The few points of his frame which touch the ground are furnished with callosities, the larger being that of the chest, which supports the weight of the body. We had with us a frolicsome baby camel ; a droll object he was, with his fat hump, unworn by burdens, wagging from side to side, and his uncouth straddling gambols. He was enjoying the hey-day of life's bright morning, and, like a young bear, had all his 24 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. troubles to come. Confiding in the tenderness of youth, and supposing he had not been soured by the bitter experiences of life, I attempted to caress him. My overtures met with the same reception as when I tried to make the acquaintance of his elders. He turned to me with an angry baby bellow. Mounting is a ticklish operation; it looks plausible enough, while the animal is recumbent. Unless you are very nimble, however, you risk a broken limb, or at the least, an ugly fall. No sooner does the seemingly impassive brute feel your touch than he rises suddenly and rapidly, and you are sent sprawl ing. The best plan, and the one usually adopted, is to get the driver to plant his foot firmly on the left fore-leg of the camel while you are mounting. Then you find yourself pitched backwards as the animal springs on its forelegs. Before • you have time to recover your balance you are thrown violently for wards, receiving a violent blow in the stomach from the pommel, as the hind-legs are raised, then once more backwards — receiving this time a thump in the back — as the camel raises the lower portion of the fore-legs and stands on its feet. In dismounting, these shakings naturally occur in reverse order. The Baddle of a hygeen is an instrument of torture. A high pommel, before and behind, are sources of COMFORTABLE LOCOMOTION. 25 suffering at every jolt. The rider comes to look upon them as a sort of Scylla and Charybdis. The saddle is attached to the camel by strong leather girths. Colonel de Coetlogon's saddle slipped off when we started, and his manly countenance, glowing with the heat, slowly set behind the camel's hump. His look of dismay only caused merriment. I am afraid human nature is always ready to laugh at the mis fortunes of others, even in the desert. The pack- saddle is a wonderful contrivance. It consists of a sack-shaped pad bent over the hump. Two pairs of narrow transverse boards meet in an angle above the saddle. Both these angular pieces are held by longi tudinal bars. Holes are pierced in the boards, and thin bars and strings passed through from the board on one side to that on the other. These cross-pieces serve to keep the boards together, and prevent the longitudinal bars from slipping upwards. The shebri- yeh is a bed placed athwart the camel's back. The shukduf is a chair slung on either side. The tahtrudn is a sort of cot which swings freely between two camels in Indian file. Afterwards, when sick, I experienced the varied pleasures of this mode of con veyance when attached to two camels of unequal paces. None of these luxuries of camel-riding were used by us. Some of us used stirrups, some sat lady- 26 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. fashion. General Hicks always rode a-straddle, with the stirrups of his horse's saddle attached to the camel gear. The Arabs say that the pace of the hygeen is so smooth that one may sip a cup of coffee at full trot without spilling a drop. This has not been my experience. On the second day, by mistake, they brought me the wrong camel, a wild one. On approaching him I observed that he eyed me in a sly manner. I mounted easily, with his permission. If his eye was inactive, his body was by no means so. After pro ceeding a few yards he turned his loftily-poised head nonchalantly on either side, and then commenced a series of buck-jumping which I believe no native of the Cape or Australia — countries well known for the bucking propensities of their horses — would have sat. At any rate, I was speedily deposited on the ground. My wayward mount, after freely indulging in his eccentricities, sat down, probably fatigued with the exertion he had undergone in displaying to me his proficiency in the art of bucking. The caravan was far ahead, and as I had no notion of being left alone in a waterless desert, there was a difference of opinion between us as to the propriety of the proceeding. I wanted him to get up, but in reply to my admonitory MY CAMEL SADDLE TURNS TURTLE. 27 jerks at the halter he merely turned round super ciliously, with an expression which implied : ' I'll see you further first.' I then prodded him with my sword. Thus persuaded, he went off at a sharp trot, but in the wrong direction. I did not know this at the time, as I saw plenty of tracks and concluded that they belonged to our caravan. After a short spell of this the saddle ' turned turtle,' and I was left on the ground. Whilst endeavouring to preserve the ' mentem cequam in rebus arduis,' I was hailed in a stentorian voice. It was that of Major Martin, who, luckily for me, had left the caravan on the look-out for buck ; and, seeing me going forth un willingly into the wilderness, came to the rescue. He had taken his bearings before leaving camp. Though sympathy with others' woes is not con spicuous in the desert, hospitality is ; and tendering me his flask of ' square-face,' the elixir vita of the country in which he had served for seven years — the Cape — he put me in the way I should go. My erratic mount performed the rest of the day's journey with a ring in his nose, which rendered him more amenable to the behests of his rider. With respect to the alleged ease of the camel's pace, it is probably comfortable compared with that of a giraffe; but commend me to any species of quad- 28 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. raped I have bestridden, in preference to the camel, as a mount. Moreover, he is only at home on level ground, and becomes comparatively helpless among rocks. How to make him let you down when travel ling alone, mounting and dismounting, stopping and starting, belong to the higher and more recondite branches of the art of camel-riding; and for their due execution you are at the mercy of the drivers, who manage their unwieldy charges with ease and gentleness, seldom rebuking any stubbornness other wise than by the objurgatory ' Bism'illah 'alek ' (' The name of God on you '). Chopped straw forms the almost exclusive pabulum of the camel in the desert ; it is laid down at camp, and the camels crouch round in a regular circle. Ours were more lucky; they got dhurra, which they conveyed into the folds and cells of their labyrinthine stomachs, the movement of their soft prehensile lips indicating their enjoyment of the bonne bouche. They graze on the scanty desert herbage whenever they get the chance. In camping the forelegs are hobbled in order to hinder them from straying in search of food. The more favoured denizens of the Nile Valley pasture in winter and spring on green clover and chick peas; but these are luxuries unknown in the desert, where they seem to feed on sticks and stalks. It is very HOW LONG CAMELS GO WITHOUT WATER. 29 curious to watch them drink. The water is sucked in with a loud noise, and sensibly diminishes in the bucket at every gulp, while it can be seen rising in waves through the long neck as each deep draught is pumped into the internal water-tank. The length of time a camel will go without water has been the subject of conflicting statements. It depends upon the amount of heat endured and work done. Desert camels can go much longer without water than those which have been bred on fertile land. It is a matter of habit : four days is the limit ; seven is a myth. 30 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER III. EN ROUTE TO BERBER. A savage place, as holy and enchanted As e'er beneath a waning moon was haunted By woman wailing for her demon lover. The plain after leaving Suakin is apparently level, but there is a gradual and imperceptible rise, as, after a few hours' march, the town is seen like a glittering white streak below us. The plain is strewn with huge black boulders. After twelve miles of this, we arrived at Bir Handuk, our first halting-place. Right glad were we to descend from our pinnacles and stretch ourselves on the sand while our tents were being pitched. At six we sat down to our first camp dinner in the wilderness : we had not lost our appetites. Glad were we to turn into our sand beds : a sounder sleep I never enjoyed. The wells are situated at the foot of a low rocky spur jutting out from the main range which bounds the horizon. Massey and I strolled out upon the spur before Hinner in search of game. We found nothing but DESERT AND PRESERVES. 31 doves ; Massey shot some of them. I threatened to report him to sisters and cousins at home, and told him they would ostracise him for such a ruthless proceeding, but am fain to confess that they formed a very toothsome addition to our camp fare. Next morning at five the reveil sounded. The camels, who had spent the night in trying to satisfy their hunger on dry rushes and thorny mimosa bushes, were brought in. Our escort of Egyptian soldiers was off by six, and at seven we started, after a rough breakfast. Tinned chocolate and milk formed the basis, and a most excellent one, of our morning meals ; many a time have I invoked bless ings on the head of the man who invented it. The development of the art of preserving provisions has been a great boon to those whose avocations lead them to sojourn in the wilderness, and is priceless in campaigning. Our mess-tent was well supplied with potted meats and preserves, and we lived upon the ingenuity of Messrs. Crosse & Blackwell and others whose mission it is to preserve, and send home grown delicacies to far-off lands. We now came to the mountains, and the higher we got the sweeter was the scent of the fragrant herbs which grow here so well. Camphor, mint, and thyme blended their aromatic odours until the air 32 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. was sweet with them. Now, we said, we are indeed inhaling spices and frankincense as in ' Araby the blest ! ' I believe no spot in the world can surpass the mountains of this region in their variety of sweet-smelling herbs ; it is their peculiar habitat, but by what process of natural selection I know not. We crossed the Wady Otan. The traveller seems to be a motionless point in the midst of an amphi theatre of rugged mountains for a long time during this portion of the journey. Dusky and huge, enlarging on the sight. Btbon, Childe Harold, n. 51. The ground is thickly strewn with black horn blende rocks. Our order of march was usually as follows, though we adapted it to circumstances of locality, shade, and the exigencies of our baggage train. We started at 5 a.m., marched until noon, and reposed. The baggage camels were sent on to the camping-ground for the night, and we overtook them on our hygeens after two or three hours' rest. If possible we arranged so that these halts took place in a spot which afforded some shade — a clump of mimosas or high rocks. Once, after a long, hot march, we arrived in the THE SHADOW OF THE ROCK. 33 middle of the afternoon at a huge detached mass of rock standing solitary in the midst of the plain. It had been visible for two hours, tantalising us, and when, hot and thirsty, we drew up under it, I was able to realise the full force of the passage in Scrip ture, ' the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.' No one can realise the full force and beauty of Scriptural expressions unless he has travelled in the East. The afternoons only were hot. The early morn ings from one to four were bitterly cold. From five o'clock to seven the air was bracing, balmy, and delicious. In the open plain there was generally a breeze. It was in the valleys we felt the intense heat. After leaving the Wady Otan we began to ascend more rapidly, and the ah- became closer as we entered a narrow valley, a defile in fact, into which debouched numerous ravines, the dry beds of torrents which bore witness to the violence and volume of the periodic floods which occur in these mountains.1 The peculiar vegetation of these mountain-passes is in perfect unison with their desolate grandeur. It is only on the seaward side of the watershed that 1 These mountains extend nearly 200 miles into the interior, and the highest of them is 6,000 feet. D 34 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. plants grow. Nothing can be more weird than the strange forms of the Euphorbia, which spread out then: stiff and uncouth arms amid this glowing waste of bleak stone. The dragon trees (Dracaena) and the caraib, with their prickly and jagged branches, have quite an uncanny look, and would seem to belong more properly to the realms of Eblis than to the upper world. Here and there, among the scrub at the water stations, feathered and four-footed game were to be met with. The first consisted of turkey bustards, sand grouse, and pigeons, some of which our party shot for the benefit of the mess. The second were gazelles. The eagle, the vulture, and the kite seemed to reign supreme. These are well supplied with food by the numerous carcases of camels that By the roadside fell and perished, Weary with the march of Life. There must have been hyaenas or jackals about, though we saw none, but the separated remains of camels that lined the desert track showed where they had been feeding. For instance, a head might be found many paces from the body, and the legs many yards from either. I may mention here that the detachment of troops that followed us some OPPRESSIVE DESOLATION. 35 days afterwards with our Nordenfeldts, under com mand of Captain Forrestier Walker, had a kid carried off, just before daybreak, at the second water station out of Suakin, probably by a leopard. Lions are extremely rare in the Berbereen desert, though it is said by Lepsius they are to be found between Khar toum and Berber. I doubt whether there are any there now. Through many a dark and dreary vale They passed, and many a region dolorous, Bocks, caves . . . dens, and shades of death ; A universe of death, which God by curse Created evil, for evil only good, Where all life dies, death lives, and nature breeds, Perverse, all monstrous, all prodigious things, Abominable, unutterable, and worse Than fables yet have feigned, or fear conceived, Gorgons, and Hydras, and Chimreras dire. — Milton. Once out of the mountains, and at great intervals between the wells, not a living thing was to be met with. Plains of sand and stone lay blistering in the sun. Silence and oppressive desolation reigned supreme. Once only I caught a glimpse of a couple of wild asses. They bounded away into the recesses of the wilderness long before we could approach them. Every step our camels took westward seemed to ¦0 2 36 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. bring us into a desert more desolate and forbidding. After crossing the second pass no herbage of any kind was to be seen — nothing organic seemed to exist. The strange vegetation which garnished the seaward face of the range had disappeared, From the dark barriers of that rugged clime. Bykon, Childe Harold, n. 46. The rocks were absolutely naked — not even a tuft of moss or lichen was to be seen. After crossing the third range of mountains the predominating rock is greenstone in several varieties. Very beautiful serpentine is, however, by no means unfrequent. A striking feature in the geology of this desert is the occurrence of homogeneous isolated masses of porphyry. One of these attains the height of 1,000 feet. It must not be imagined that the rocks wear their natural hue. A hammer is neces sary to get at that. They are coated with a black accretion about a millimetre thick. I do not think this phenomenon has ever been satisfactorily ex plained. It adds to the horrid desolation of the place, this waste of inky black stone. We left Sinkat to our left, little thinking of the tragic reputation this desert stronghold was shortly to acquire. THE WELLS OF HARATREE. 37 Crossing the Wady Otan, we encamped at the wells of Djibisil. Oched, another stopping-place, is a small oasis between the Wady Otan and Haratree. We reached Haratree on the fourth day. There are two deep wells here about three miles apart. Their names are El Bir Tamai and El Bir Tuahivah. This is the highest point between Suakin and Berber, and the watershed between the Nile and the Red Sea. We approached it through a ravine, or, rather, a labyrinth of ravines. Indeed, the road from this point to Ariab was nothing but a mountain pass, alternating with basin-like valleys surrounded by amphitheatres of mountains. And such mountains ! Bold, jagged, and split with deep gorges and ravines filled with dark mysterious shadows. We toiled through a succession of basins and along stony paths that would seem to offer a serious impediment to the apparently soft, velvety-gloved feet of our camels ; but pointed edges or roughly-covered boulders were alike passed over without inconvenience or lameness. From clefts and crannies, tufts of dried desert herbage • seemed to struggle for life. We had the thorny mimosa always, through which, if not careful, we were dragged by our camels, to. the detriment of flesh and clothing. Sometimes isolated rocks would rise in 38 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. the glare like fortresses of mediaeval structure. Some times huge boulders, tossed hither and thither, would start up like giant idol heads in all directions. Again, conical blocks, seen in the vapour of the distance, would give the notion that a village lay in front. Leaving the wells at Wady Haratree, we struck across a plain, or rather basin, the floor of which was com posed of alternate strips of coarse herbage and bare stone. Some miles further is another well called Salalaat, where we halted, and where we shot some sand grouse. Afterwards, at Ariab, we came across some more of these birds, and they were heartily welcomed at our mess. Sportsmen at home would stand aghast to hear of men shooting grouse in the month of February, and in such a manner. We took a mean advantage of them by waiting for them at the wells, and shot them on the ground occasionally. Proh/ Pudor. Twenty-three or twenty-four miles intervene be tween the well of Salalaat and Bir Hayaha, the first water obtainable in the Wady Kokreb. The Kokreb group of wells consists of three — Bir Hayaba, just mentioned; Bir el Matre, about six furlongs further on ; and Bir Abd-el-Hab, a mile and a half further. The first two are merely holes in the sand, and the water is scooped out as it is wanted; and a very A PRETTY OASIS. 39 limited supply one gets ; but Bir A bd-el-Hab is a good well, revetted with stone and furnishing a good supply of fair water. Proceeding across Wady Kokreb, about two miles wide, we arrived at Wady Yumga, about the same width. We were now on the third mountain range. Boweh, an oasis to the south, is a much-frequented spot. This we did not visit, and made the best of our way to Ariab. The line of demarcation between the territory of the Hadendoa and Bishareen Arabs runs through this valley. The Sheikh of the Hadendoa levies tribute on every caravan that passes. Ours, of course, was exempt from this tax. We slept at Ahab, where we found water, and, after a toilsome march next day, at length reached the welcome shelter of the oasis of Ariab, where two deep wells, sunk in solid rock, gave an abundant supply of good water, and luxuriant acacia trees shaded us from a scorching sun, somewhat hotter than a burning July day at home. Encamped amidst the foliage was a considerable number of Bishareen under a ' sheikh.' They had, on inquiry, little know ledge of the Mahdi or his movements, and less interest in them or his career. A trader, however, on his way to Egypt, informed us that the Mahdi had retreated on a report reaching him that the English were 40 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. coming against him; that he was known in the country as a Dongola man, Mohammed Ahmed by name ; that his former calling was that of a carpenter, and that he had ceased to assert all claims to be a, prophet or to have any religious mission, but that he did assume the title of Sultan of the Soudan. Recent events have demonstrated the falsity of this state ment. Ariab is the prettiest oasis between Suakin and Berber. It is the point of junction of several narrow valleys, and their wild and rugged vistas contrast sharply with the green clump of foliage at the wells. We had descended more than a thousand feet since leaving Wady Haratree. We were now seven days from Suakin, and about to begin the most arduous part of the journey. We rested a day at Ariab, whence we had two good days' march before us through a region devoid of water, before reaching O'Bak, seventy miles off, where there is a limited supply of brackish water obtained from several small shafts sunk in the sand. From this place to Bir Mohabe is another waterless track, taking two days to cross. After leaving Ariab we changed our order of march, resting during the day and marching at night. The camels go faster in the cool night air than by day. There was something very enchanting SPLENDID STARLIGHT. 41 about these night marches across the sandy waste which lay around us after O'Bak. How silent and how vast ! Byron, Cain, Sc. 11. ' Hades.' The camels glided noiselessly and spectre-like over the track ; their shadows on the sand, changing with every movement, and every hour, formed an inex haustible study. The starlight of the southern sky shone through the translucent air, and for hours to gether the gentle tread of the soft soles of our animals fell upon our ears like the plash of wavelets on the beach of a summer sea. Heaven's ebon vault Studded with stars unutterably bright, Through which the moon's unclouded grandeur rolls, Seems like a canopy which love has spread To curtain her sleeping world.— Shelley, Queen Mab. The air as we descended into the plain was hotter, and no longer so deliriously soft and balmy as it had been along the whole route from Hara tree, through Kokreb to Ariab. That portion of the road, with its deep shadowy ravines cleaving the mountains, tangled and knotted as it were with its oases of fresh verdure, is the sanatorium of the desert. The mornings and evenings were inex- 42 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. pressibly delicious and bracing ; one feels more vigorous in passing from the plain to this elevated region. The night after leaving Ariab, we encamped in the gravelly, waterless plain, with the mountain mass called Jebel Gurrat to the right. O'Bak, where we found about twenty Bishareen families, is the commencement of the plain of shifting sand, which, for about six miles beyond O'Bak, is blown up into dunes about one hundred feet high. These dunes usually assume the form of a parapet, with the interior and exterior slopes, and, in the distance, resemble a line of entrenchments. The general direction of this belt of sand-hills is north and south. Over and among them toiled our camels, and as we passed over each eminence we could see the waterless, treeless plain beyond, which now and again gave place to that malicious mocking demon of the wilderness, the mirage ; constructing for us, with magic celerity, all the enchanting scenery, ' cloud- capt towers and gorgeous palaces,' cool lakes and shadowy groves, which seem so specially designed to mock the thirsty desert wayfarer, that one can devise no more apt expression for the mirage than that of the Arabs— Bahr es Sheytan ('the sea of Satan '). Water, water everywhere, And not a drop to drink. A SIMOOM. 43 Our camels sank deep into the fine quicksand at every step, and we were heartily glad to get on firmer ground, however dreary. And a gloomier waste never man saw than that in which we encamped at a spot about twenty-four miles from O'Bak. There was no water, not a vestige of vegetation, nor of organic life of any kind. The loose black boulders with which the plain was strewn gave a terrible aspect to it. They looked as though they had been blackened by fire, and the entire region seemed to be the debris of a vast conflagration — the cinder of a burnt-up world. The scenery is of the type that astronomers tell us is presented by the moon — the remains of a worn-out volcano. Before reaching our camping-ground we passed the huge solitary block of granite called ' Eremit.' And further on was visible Aboo Odfa, the obelisk-like rock men tioned by travellers. The wind-driven sand has worn its base until it resembles in form a huge fungus, or a pear. Smaller blocks of this kind are seen at intervals on the road. As we lay encamped ' all in a hot and copper sky,' a simoom sprang up, and we saw the sand gathered into columns ap parently interminable in height, as their attenuated tops vanishing into air travelled along the horizon. They seemed to stalk over the desert like storm 44 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. spirits, and called back to my memory the djin in the ' Arabian Nights,' which, let out of the casket, assumed the proportions of a huge column of cloud. Nature here is so grim and gruesome in all her moods that one can well imagine the strange crea tions of ghouls and djins which has been called forth by the fancy of the people. The road across this boulder-flat consisted of numerous pathways run ning side by side like cattle tracks. Our camels marched side by side, not in file ; the pack animals we sent on as before, together with 300 Bashi- Bazouks, retaining as an escort 100 Egyptians. An interval of only twenty-five miles now separated us from Bir Mohabe. The name of the last Wady we traversed was Aboo Salab. We accomplished the distance between O'Bak and Berber (seventy-four miles) in two days. Bir Mohabe was reached at one o'clock in the morning, and, although wearied from our long and toilsome ride, we lingered over our last ' mess ' in the desert until three, talking of the incidents of the march and indulging in specula tions as to what awaited us in the future. It was with an infinite sense of relief that we turned in that morning, as we reflected that we had accom plished the first stage of our journey, and that we had turned our backs on the desert. An hour's WE LEAVE OUR CAMELS. 45 ride would now bring us to the broad waters of the Nile, and with this pleasant reflection, mingled with a heartfelt sense of thankfulness towards the Almighty, I fell into as sound a sleep on my bed of sand as ever man enjoyed. At four o'clock in the afternoon we set out for Berber, a short stage of seven miles. We now for the first time mounted our horses and abandoned our camels with deep sighs of relief. Their task was accomplished, and it was with a feeling akin to pity that we thought of the poor brutes doomed to pass their lives in the wilderness we had left behind. They had suffered very much during the atter part of the journey, and were tired out to such an extent indeed that it was painful to ride them. I bade farewell to my ship of the desert. Poor old fellow ! he had carried me through faithfully without any mishap. He was a venerable camel, and had grown grey in the service. I felt sincerely sorry at parting from him. I don't know whether there was a mutual feeling of affection between us or whether it was because he was dead-beat, but when I patted him, strange to say he did not' even snarl at me. The letter sent by me to the ' Daily News ' will serve to give a further notion of our march. 46 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. ' Kawa : April 10. ' Continuing my story of the march of our general staff through the " howling wilderness," I may say that when we arrived at the oasis of Ariab we found encamped the Bashi-Bazouk battalion that left Suakin before us. It was a picturesque sight — an enormous tree in front, with its twisted roots and far-stretching tangled boughs, from which parasites creep, rise, and fall; a row of white tents, before which, in their varied costumes, were the men sitting, lounging, and standing in groups, some with their many-coloured spear-tassels dropping on their shoulders; others again with their white turbans bound round the tarboosh, and others with the linen folds thrown negligently from the "burnooso" over their head. Some had neatly-embroidered jackets, as worn in their Albanian and Roumelian homes ; others Anatolian dandies, vied with the former in their rainbow-coloured scarfs girt to the loins by crimson and buff stamped leather belts, containing cartridges, silver-mounted pistols, murderous knives, and pockets carrying their worldly wealth. Many wore long " caftans " of silk, and many the Albanian knicker- bocker trousers, leaving the knees uncovered, and wearing around the calf and shin a richly-embroidered gaiter laced tightly around the ankle— the bare foot A HASSAR SHEIKH. 47 being sandalled. Planted defiantly before the marquee of their commander flowed their green standard, over which was a guard with fixed bayonets. A sheikh of the Hassar, a portion of the Berber district, having under his jurisdiction the road by Korosko and Assouan to Cairo, came by the order of the Governor of Berber to place himself at the disposal of Hicks Pasha, who may be said to have held his first " divan " here, the English officers sitting on his left, the chief on his right, with Hamid Bey, aide-de-camp of the Khedive, sent especially to accompany the expedition to Khartoum, and the Bashi-Bazouk colonel on his right. Coffee was served, and the sheikh congratulated the Pasha on his arrival, saying how pleased all his tribe were to see the English, and that, now, no doubt, justice would be done to the Arab tribes. The General replied, after thanking him for his good wishes, that not only the English, but the Khedive, wished and intended that justice should be done to all. After coffee had been handed round in the little tantalising cups of the country, and cigarettes, our friend took leave of us for the time. ' After a rest of a day, as the camels were getting leg-weary, we started off the baggage animals at three, and mounted our dromedaries at five. Our sheikh we found in front with a line of armed retainers 48 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. carrying shields, spears and rifles. The sun soon set behind the low sand-hills, and for half an hour we trotted along in darkness. About seven the moon " un veiled her peerless light." I can't say I saw it, as I did not want to crick my neck, and as for stopping a dromedary to look round, it is a dangerous business. You find yourself left behind in a twinkle by your fast-trotting companion, and there is a probability of his at once insisting on lying down comfortably, from which position, unless you are up in camel-driving, you may not be able to move him. At about nine we made a short halt to stretch our cramped legs, light pipes and cigarettes, gargle our mouths, and give breathing time to our camels. On we go again, now in two lines, giving up the tedious Indian file which we had to adhere to when the ground was rocky at the sides of our beaten path. Right glad are we when we see the fires of our camp gleaming in front, and thoughts of hot chocolate, our usual night beverage, suggest themselves. We are soon there— simply a small oasis, with eight wells. In the early morn we heard over our heads flocks of sand grouse. Our sportsmen went out, and succeeded in bagging a few before breakfast ; so here we had grouse shooting in March instead of August, but the game laws are not stringent in the Soudan. After a broiling hot day in SHEIKH ABDEL GADES. 49 our tents, for we march only by night, we were off at six. As the camp broke up, the Arab camel-drivers waved their spears, and shouted, " Sheikh Abdel Gades." This was repeated several times. On in quiring the reason of this, I was told that Sheikh Abdel Gades is the patron of the desert and protector of camel-drivers, and that he is to be invoked at the commencement of each day's march. There is a short purple twilight for an hour ; we jog on in darkness, and then long dark shadows are passed in front, and again the spears of the Bishareen Arab escort glitter as the moon rises majestically behind the mountain mass in our rear. What a subject for an artist ! ' We now began gradually to emerge from the continual wall of mountain, piercing our way through deep and difficult passes till we entered on vast circular plains, having waded through deep sand with hills on our right and left, which presented the exact appearance of well and neatly-built lines of fortifications. The plains now were either covered with dry burnt grass or scattered boulders, the latter often starting up in the form of quaint uncouth idols. We were told by Egyptian staff guides, and by a very imperfect map by an American, that the distance to our halting-place, prior to reaching Berber, was ten, 5o HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. twenty, or, at the utmost, twenty-five miles. We found, to the cost of our skin— now getting raw, as most of us, to use the hunting term, were "losing leather " rapidly — that the distance we had to traverse was forty miles. Our poor patient animals— and we did feel sorry for them— were getting very weary and began to stumble. A camel, when he once falls from fatigue, does so never to rise, as we could learn by the carcases on each side. But at last, at 1 p.m., we hailed our camp fires. We had done with camel riding for many days to come. The next day we were to mount our horses, which had been led through the howling wilderness. The following morning the Governor of Berber, accompanied by an armed retinue mounted on dromedaries, came to pay his respects to the English Pasha. The divan scene of the previous day was re-enacted, cigarettes, coffee, and compliments being the order of the day. ' At 4 p.m. General Hicks and staff mounted their chargers together for the first time, all feeling de lighted and inspirited at the idea of once more spring ing on the back of a noble steed in place of clamber ing up the ricketty thing called by courtesy a saddle, lashed on the deck of the ship of the desert. Gaily we galloped on towards Berber, distant only six or seven miles ; in front the Governor's escort, next the OLD FATHER NILE. 51 General's body-guard mounted on camels in two lines, the General with staff officers on either side, the re mainder in threes. Behind came the Egyptian staff officers on dromedaries, and a posse of retainers, servants, and camp followers, on all sorts of quadru peds. As we descended to Berber we gladly hailed " Pater Nilus." Who shall find words to describe the intense feeling of satisfaction at seeing flowing water again after traversing the parched desert ? We descend a shelving gravelly plain into Berber, a town of some 10,000 inhabitants, the Nile port for the shipping of Nile goods up the river to Khartoum. From Suakin the merchandise is carried by camels across the desert, and then by " meskep," or sailing vessels, to its destination. As we rode through the narrow streets, one was much struck by the ancient Egyptian style of architecture ; and though the buildings are stunted and simply constructed of sun-dried bricks coated with a species of mud mortar, the form followed is that seen in the vestiges preserved to us of the period of the Pharaohs. ' At Berber we note for the first time the excess of the pure Negro race, either the descendants of former slaves or the actual slaves of the swarthy Arab mer chants. These Berbereen blacks are to all appearance most happy and contented. Whether they are held E 2 52 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. iii bondage or not, all alike have either laugh or song on their lips. The labour they perform is, to a Euro pean observer, of the most dilatory character, a chaunt accompanying the slightest physical exertion. So slight is the physical power exhibited, that four men will leisurely roll a bale of goods that an English wharfman or porter would make nothing of. They pause at every turn of a package and sing in unison ; then over it goes again ; in fact, they take an hour doing what an ordinary labourer at home would accomplish in a quarter of the time, and no one seems to hurry them. They apparently have it all their own way, and their way is to take things leisurely. Let it be understood that no apology is offered here for slavery, though from my inquiries among those in forced servitude I did not meet with one who desired to return to his or her native condition of barbarism ; and this, I think, speaks volumes in favour of the kind way in which they are generally treated. Through the medium of an interpreter I had a long conversa tion with a couple of very neatly-clad Dinka men, hailing from the country south of Senaar, lying between the White and Blue Niles. They had been captured when young in a tribal war— something, for instance, like a feud would be between Yorkshiremen and Northumbrians — and, though their captors were CONTENTED SLAVES. 53 of the same race, they were mercilessly sold into servi tude. To-day, they repudiate all notion of returning to their own country. They said, " Here we are well cared for by our master," or, as they termed him, " kind father." " He clothes us, and when meal time comes we sit under his roof and eat our fill, and at night we have good bedding and shelter. When we desire it, he gives us money to go to the bazaar, and what belongs to him belongs to us. We are of his family. Why should we wish to return to the misery and incertitude of our early life ? " Such, so far as I have been able to glean, is the general feeling of those in servitude. They become, so to speak, members of the household of their masters. They benefit largely by the civilisation, such as it is, that surrounds them. They form ties and affections. They marry and have children, and they become thoroughly identified with the country and surroundings of those who own them. ' At sunset the " Tam-tam," or native drum, is heard in the court, or at the entrance of every house. Master and servants are alike holding their "ter- tubas," just as in Spain one hears in provincial towns and villages the twanging of the guitar and the long-sighed tremulous note of some Arab fathered music. The female slaves, if really they can be called so, seem to sit as high at their dress tables as 54 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. the lighter coloured mistress whom they serve. Of ornaments they have plenty, silver and gold coins being woven into their innumerable thinly-plaited tresses. Amber, coral, and jasper necklaces fall in rows over their, when young, statuesque bosoms; here, as is the custom of the country, left untram melled by robe or corset. Like the Bishareen Arabs, the Berbereens, male and female, wear attached to their right arm, above the elbow, red or brown leather cylindrical-shaped amulets, like small drums, con taining scraps of parchment inscribed with verses of the Koran or some cabalistic words invented by a local fakir. These are believed to preserve the wearer from all bodily harm. Happily, whatever may be the kindness shown by the master to his bondsman, slavery has its days numbered. The Government of the Khedive, rightly influenced, is determined to stamp it out; and the presence of English officers (now in the service of his Highness) in the distant provinces of the Soudan will un doubtedly aid the extinction of the curse. Let the Mahdi be disposed of, and the revolted districts brought back to their allegiance, a new moral teach ing firmly and sternly inculcated will shed a new light through these dark lands. When the now tur bulent and ever-conflicting tribes are made finally to THE REAL CURSE OF SLAVERY. 55 understand that the sale of their fellow-men is every where prohibited, the great incentive to strife will cease to exist, prisoners, hitherto a source of wealth, will become unmarketable, and the excuse for inter necine warfare with a view to mutual kidnapping become obsolete. Then the numerous tribes border ing the White and Blue Niles will find there is no further profit in war, and with general peace and the development of civilising influences, the ploughshare will take the place of the sword. To this end the Government of the Khedive will strenuously and honestly strive; and, backed by the energetic work of the English now deputed to attain this end, there is hope for a successful termination of the present revolt. To sum up briefly, the curse of slavery is not the actual holding of slaves, but the misery caused by the destruction of villages, the severing of family ties, and the cruelties perpetrated in the work of capture. People are dragged miles and miles without water, chained by the neck ; in fact, the trails of the capturers may be followed by the skele tons of their captives left on the line of route. ' To return. The streets were lined with troops, behind whom crowded hundreds of natives, male and female — the women setting up their shrill and tremu lous cry, " Lou, lou, lou, lou, lou," significant of 56 HlCKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. pleasure and admiration always given at the witness ing of any pageant. Here and there were bands of all kinds of music, wind and string, with the ever accompanying " tam-tam." It was wonderful how our horses stood the perfectly awful clamour, mingled as it was with the firing of cannon ; but they did, through sheer fright, I believe, as the row was enough to terrify a donkey. The flag on the Gover nor's house was, navy fashion, dipped as we entered and were received by the Governor in grand " divan," coffee and cigarettes being handed round. On leaving we were escorted to another Government House, and opened our little mess under a roof, for the first time, for many days. We remained for two days, till the steamers were in readiness to take General Hicks and his staff up the Nile.' BERBER A I LAST. 57 CHAPTER IV. BERBER A DESCRIPTION OF THE TOWN AND ITS INHABITANTS. She and comparisons are odious. Dr. John Donne, Elegy 8. Berber is not beautiful per se. An aerial voyager dropping down on it from a balloon which had ascended from a garden in Paris or Vienna or lovely Buda-Pesth would, in all probability, wish himself well and speedily out of it again ; but comparisons are odious. To go back a little from where we left off at the end of the last chapter, we will just take another glance round. A collection of mud-brick houses, or rather huts, with here and there a building with loftier pretensions to architectural style, would not be termed a fine city, even in a young colony ; but to the way-worn traveller, emerging from the parching desert, the tall palms and umbrageous acacias in which it is embowered invest it with a 58 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. charm not its own, and it rises on the horizon with all the fairy glamour which clung to the fabled Cimango towards whose longed-for shores were turned the wistful gaze of the adventurous mariners of the fifteenth century, whose quest ended in the discovery of a continent surpassing in wonders the Hesperides of ancient dreams. Upon our entry the entire population seemed to have turned out to welcome us. The streets were lined with a sable crowd of both sexes, the girls clad in a simple garb, consisting solely of the rachat — a scanty petticoat, made of fine strips of leather, hanging like a fringe from the hips— and the women in a blue calico swathing, and the universal white muslin scarf with red borders. On every side we were greeted with that strange Arab utterance of welcome and rejoicing, the zaghareet — a shrill cry, impossible to imitate, and which must be heard in order to be realised. It is a species of trill produced by the action of the tongue, and unattain able to a Western larynx. Farquhar compared it to something between the chirp of a cricket and a whistle. The garrison, consisting of 1,000 men, lined the streets, together with our friends the Bashi-Bazouks, THEY CALL FOR FIDDLERS THREE. 59 who had arrived the day before. They were a motley crew, and when they presented arms, I hardly think they did it as one man. The band consisted of three fiddlers and a tam-tam beater, who persisted in playing the Khedivial Hymn, while the buglers of the Soudanese were playing some other tune. The effect was peculiar. We were received by the Governor with a repeti tion of the mock majesty which we had witnessed at Suakin. There was a salute as before, this time from the throats of two puny guns ; and the Turkish flag which floated from the summit of the Governor's residence was, to our great wonder, dipped three times, in nautical fashion. We were installed in a Government building, and our mess was a jovial one. We pledged each other, and drank success to our enterprise. Our mess-room was illuminated by a lantern quite as wonderful, I should think, as that of Aladdin. It was a huge structure of perforated iron, garnished with a kaleido scopic arrangement of coloured bits of glass. I am afraid to say how many candles it contained, but I verily believe it was the biggest lantern in the world. Once more we enjoyed the luxury of divans, and 60 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. after a sound night's rest we sallied forth to lay in a stock of provisions for our Nile voyage to Khartoum. The bazaar consists of rows of small uncovered shops on each side of the principal streets. They are fairly supplied with goods to meet the popular demand, but mean, not to say squalid. The houses, like those of Egypt, are plastered outside with manure, which is here, however, mixed with sand. The windows are small apertures, needless to say, innocent of glass. Berbereen domestic economy requires culinary opera tions to be carried on in a separate hut, in which is the flour-mill. This usually consists of a piece of granite about two feet by one, fixed in a clay socket, which holds the flour. The housewife, in a kneeling posture, pushes backwards and forwards a smaller stone on the surface of the larger and immobile one. Between the two the grain is, of course, placed. This operation requires more exertion than the circular querns of Lower Egypt, which are turned by means of a wooden handle. We saw numerous groups at the family board — or rather, the family bowl — which, made of wood, was placed on the earth in the centre of the group. It contains maize-flour boiled into a thick slab porridge, heaped in pillau fashion high above the rim of the bowl, and eaten with an accom paniment of sauce made from powdered bamieh— the THE BERBEREEN LADIES. 61 Hibiscus esculent us, with which gelatinous and suc culent vegetable all Oriental travellers must have made acquaintance. This dish is called here assida ; and I am told that a carefully prepared assida, ac companied by pounded beef, and highly seasoned with pepper-pods, salt, and a skilful combination of spices and aromatic herbs, is a plat which that prince of gourmets, Brillat-Savarin himself, would not have deemed unworthy of mention in the ' Physiologie du Gout.' It is, of course, eaten with the fingers, each morsel of paste being plunged into the sauce before being conveyed to the mouth. The only other supplementary aid to a repast in addition to the wooden bowl is the rind of a gourd, which serves as a drinking-vessel. Berbereen ladies are, in common with all Ethio pians, very proud of their hair, which is tortured, plaited, and stiffened by gum into forms almost as ungraceful as the chignon of more northern regions. The muslin scarfs, half drawn across the face, left exposed some very wicked dark eyes, but the un sightly nose-rings disarmed their power to a great extent. The town is situated on a gravelly barren soil on the right bank of the Nile, but there is a narrow strip of highly cultivated land close to the 62 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. river, thickly studded with palms, bananas, orange, lemon, fig, lime, and pomegranate ¦- trees, and grape vines. The gardens of Sheikh Halifa are really beau tiful. : .' Before leaving, General Hicks received a letter from Colonel Stewart at Khartoum, informing him that Obeid and Bara had surrendered with 7,000 men, 10,000 stand of arms and some mountain guns, with an immense quantity of ammunition. We were pleased to learn, however, that the Mahdi did not consider it gentlemanly for a prophet to fight with guns. Colonel Stewart further stated that the whole of Darfour and Kordofan were then in the hands of the enemy. It is curious to remark that the Hamdy Bey, the Khedive's aide-de-camp, who travelled with us, knew nothing of this, neither did the Mudir. Perhaps they concealed their knowledge. I may here mention that Obeid is 250 miles south-west of Khartoum, and Bara is a little north of Obeid. Colonel Stewart in his letter requested General Hicks to lose no time in reaching Khartoum, so we left Berber with all possible despatch. About this time the ' Times ' pub lished the astounding information that the Mahdi was threatening Khartoum, and that Colonel Stewart THE MAHDI HAS GENTLEMANLY SCRUPLES. 63 might possibly hold out with the few English officers who were coming to his rescue. We all laughed heartily at this -Colonel Stewart being on a purely civil mission, and Khartoum not being threatened in the least. 64 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER V. THE BEAUTIES OF THE NILE AN ARAB WEDDING. Delicias videam, Nile jocose, tuas.1 We lost no time in getting in our stores, and in thirty- six hours were afloat on the Nile — stream of streams. In the first boat, which flew the General's flag, a white crescent and three stars on a red field, were Hicks Pasha, Major Farquhar, Colonel de Coetlogon, Dr. Rosenberg, and Captain Evans. In the second were myself, Majors Martin and Warner, and Captain Massey. A salute was fired, the troops lining the bank, presented arms, and the Khedivial Hymn was played. For the first time we found ourselves on the gran old Nile, considerably above the Fifth Cataract, having travelled from Cairo, some 1,300 miles. It may seem curious to many that we found steamers at all at such an immense distance up the river with so many cataracts intervening, but they were 1 May I see thy delights, 0 merry Nile ! THE EVER-SQUEAKING SAKEEYEH. 65 brought at immense expense and with great trouble, in sections, on camel-back across the desert and put together at Khartoum; most of them for Baker's and Gordon's expeditions.1 Owing to the numerous rocks and sand-banks it is not possible to navigate at night. Our little steamers could only steam five miles against the current. Our first surprise was to see the wonderful fer tility of the land bordering the Nile on both sides. The state of cultivation was marvellous under the labour of the industrious husbandmen of the Sou dan. We had not proceeded far before our ears were struck by a series of unearthly groans and shrieks. The cause soon became apparent. The sounds pro ceeded from the huge water-wheels on the river banks called sakeeyeh. They are vertical, some of them 30 feet in diameter, and worked by oxen, which turn a large horizontal cogged wheel. They are kept going night and day. To the vertical wheel are attached a number of buckets by an endless chain. These fill themselves with water and throw it into a trough, from which branch many channels. The sakeeyeh will irrigate from three to four acres in twenty-four hours. The Government levies a tax 1 Some I have since learnt steamed intact up the cataracts. F 66 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. of 51, per annum on those who make use of the appliance. Not only were the steeps bordering the river rich in verdure, but the surface of the glorious stream itself teemed with wild-fowl of all kinds, big and little. There was something comic in the aspect of this gallinaceous assemblage. Little coots and terns were ranged amicably cheek by jowl with great pelicans and Brobdingnagian herons — a specimen of which we secured through a clever rifle shot from Major Martin. The bird bore a perfect resemblance to a denizen of an English heronry, magnified about six times. Mind and body were both re cuperated by grateful repose, as we glided hour after hour through this African aviary between the fertile but monotonous banks, which, at the mouth of the Atbara and at the pyramids of Meroe, only offered a change to our jaded vision. But the banks alone were monotonous. The luminous blue sky was continually darkened by thickening legions of water fowl, sweeping and wheeling by myriads in their hurried flight, and the whirr of their wings sounded like the bursting of a storm on distant woodlands. It would be tedious to give an account of all our halting places at night, but at the first of these, a large viuage, where we stopped about 6 p.m. for A HANDSOME BRIDEGROOM. 67 fuel, we were fortunate enough to witness the curious ceremony of a native wedding. An Arab chief from a not distant mountain range, the Jebel Eb Gurlaib, had come with his best men, mounted on drome daries, to claim his bride. As Chaucer says, He was a veray parfit gentil knight, although his bearing did not warrant the application of the rest of the old description, for ' his port ' was certainly not ' as meke as is a mayde's.' The sheikh of the village, surrounded by graceful youths in the midst of tam-tam beatings and blowing of horns, was receiving the bridegroom as we landed. He was bronzed and handsome, and wore a turban of gold tissue, with drooping silk folds at the back of the neck, a richly embroidered kuftan (robe), a sash of vivid, albeit exquisitely blended hues, a crimson belt, filled with cartridges, and red leather boots to the knee. The pommel of his saddle was covered with a leopard skin. He had a richly damascened double-barrelled gun, the stock of which was inlaid with silver. His best men, but slightly robed, with a yard or two of white linen, which stood out whiter still on their brilliantly burnished, dark bronzed bodies, were armed with spears and straight two-handled swords, and either round or oblong shields of rhinoceros hide. F 2 68 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. On our approach, the sheikh of the village made place for us within the circle of friends and relations with the greatest courtesy. The bridegroom and his men occupied the position of honour, and squatting at their feet were the sheikh's musicians. At the sound of the first taps on the tam-tam the young men of the village, with no other garments than a waist-cloth, bounded forward, and making their lances quiver over the heads of the musicians, shouted in defiant tones, ' I am brave, I am brave, I am brave ! ' Then, brandishing sword or lance in every direction, they leaped frantically from side to side, as though attacking an imaginary enemy. Now, others rushed in, and, going through the same motions, joined in the melee till feints at sword cuts, and lance thrusts in the air, seemed likely to turn sport into earnest. So excited did the sheikh's young men become, urged as they were by the inspiring songs, and the clapping of hands of the maidens of the village, that the mimic strife seemed really likely to end in blood shed. Then the bridegroom and his men went through a fantasia, galloping their dromedaries at full speed, and charging through the crowd, wheeling rapidly, and then racing one against the other. This went on for about an hour, until all seemed fairly tired. The sheikh and his chief men then came MARRIAGE SPORTS. 69 and greeted us in the fashion of the country, which is this : the friends and acquaintances meet and repeatedly pat the palm of each other's right hand, exclaiming, ' Taibeen, taibeen ? ' (' Are you well ? ') No answer is given, but it would be a great breach of etiquette not to go through the gestures and con tinue the inquiry for some minutes. Until this wearisome piece of business is got over there is no attempt at conversation. High and low, rich and poor, scrupulously carry out this form of courtesy. For the first three days we continued passing between highly cultivated banks, with the ever-groan ing sakeeyehs at work, and here and there villages. Every now and then we came to large groves of palm trees, among which nestled small hamlets. The fertility surrounding them does not extend far ; you pass through a quarter of a mile of cultivation, and then comes the eternal arid plain leading to the barren hills. Between each village are usually large tracks of sand, scattered here and there with mimosa. The so-called island of Meroe is on the right bank. It comprises the district between the Nile and the Atbara. We saw the famous Pyramids near the modern village of Sur, in lat. 16° 44' N., and stopped, so I had a chance of visiting the ruins of the mysterious city of Queen Candace, so little known 70 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. that it seems half relegated to the regions of myth. There are three villages called Maruga near the ruins, but whether they have any affinity in name with the ancient Meroe' I cannot decide. The Ethiopians of Meroe, says Herodotus, were of a red-brown colour, similar to the Egyptians but darker. This red colour appears on the figures of the ancient rulers of Meroe. The inscriptions are not hieroglyphic, but belong to a transition period ; Lepsius calls it Ethiopian demotic. Herodotus says Meroe is fifteen days' journey from the Red Sea for ' an active person.' A French traveller has placed the residence of the Queen of Sheba at a spot between Shendy and Khartoum : ' Cette celebre reine d'Ethiopie, qui alia ecouter les sages preceptes et les tendres discours de Salomon.' A TOWN WITHOUT STREETS. 71 CHAPTER VI. FROM MATUMMA TO KHARTOUM. True Paradise under the Ethiop line, By Nilus' head, inclosed with shining rock. We reached Matumma, and stopped a night there. It is known for its manufacture of the coloured cotton scarves which find a sale all over the Soudan. Here we first came across the circular huts called tookooli, which are so prevalent throughout the Soudan and Central Africa. Matumma was the first genuine Soudanese town we had seen, built in Soudanese fashion without streets. It should be remembered that African towns are not constructed on the principle which we are accustomed to asso ciate with town building. There is no shape or symmetry ; each inhabitant builds his hut, or huts if wealthy, where he chooses, surrounds it with a fence, and the town thus grows in an irregular fashion without any preconceived plan. Such is Matumma — a collection of houses interspersed with palms. On the opposite bank is Shendy, which 72 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. place — 125 miles distant from Berber — we reached on Wednesday evening. Shendy was once a town of importance, in fact, the capital of the whole district inhabited by the Shaygyeh tribe, which fought stubbornly against Ismail, Mehemet Ali's son, in 1821. They were principally horsemen and wore armour, but as they had no firearms they were un able to hold their own against the Pasha. In a later chapter will be found an account of the massacre of Ismail and his followers, who were butchered while sleeping off the fumes of Merissa, with which they had been regaled by their wily entertainers. Perhaps my readers may like to know what Merissa is like. It is undoubtedly the zythus of the ancient Egyptians, and is highly intoxicating. He rodotus, as far as I can remember, mentions its use. It must not be confounded with the booza ' drunk in Lower Egypt, and usually sold by Nubians in huts devoted to the purpose. Booza is a milky acidulous mash made from malt ; it is not intoxicating, or only very slightly so. Merissa, the 'national' beverage of the Soudan, is made from maize (durrah), which is caused to germinate by moisture. It is then dried in the sun, and reduced to flour between millstones. This is then made into dough, and boiled. The 1 TJnde derivator, our slang word ' booze.' 'IN VERDURE CLAD.' 73 liquid is strained through bags, and left to ferment. The result is a thick syrupy liquor, mawkish and, to me, repulsive in taste, although Europeans have spoken in its praise ere now. It is offered to the visitor as a mark of hospitality, and is partaken of by the natives in a wooden bowl which passes round from mouth to mouth. At daybreak a fairy-like scene burst upon us. The broad expanse of the magnificent river, silvered by the first rays of the rising sun, was studded with islands ' in verdure clad,' which peeped forth through the rapidly vanishing purple mist. Far, far away up the winding sheet of water, we could discern a long succession of white lateen sails of vessels bound for Khartoum laden with troops and stores. The scenery of this part of our Nile voyage was very lovely. The hills gradually approached the banks, and, as we neared the cataract, closed in upon us. The river from this point, and throughout the Sixth Cataract, was dotted with islets. Happy isles, Like those Hesperian gardens famed of old, Fortunate fields and groves and flowery vales, Thrice happy isles. — Milton, hi. 570. The first of these is of some size, and is called the Island of Marnad. The people call them the 74 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. ninety-nine islands, without having taken the trouble to count them, I suppose. They are covered with magnificent groves of acacias and holy-thorn, among which creepers entwine themselves. As we advanced, the scene became wildly romantic, and the Nile channel was narrowed to the pro portions of a mountain stream. We neared the last cataract, and passed a steamer deserted and hopelessly stranded. Above us, and almost over us, stood the bold range of Jebel Hazebat, as if to defy further progress. We are now fairly in the cataract ; huge boulders rear their heads on all sides, and ominous-looking reefs (shellals) jut out of the current. The steamer carrying Hicks Pasha and a portion of the Staff, after stranding once or twice, made a dash at it and passed the rapids triumphantly. Not so its companion, on which I was. After trying again and again various passages, we found ourselves firmly grounded. All sorts of plans were had recourse to, especially that of taking the anchor out in a boat, dropping it, and trying to wind ourselves up to it by steam power. Away went our consort, thinking no doubt we should quickly follow. We tugged and tugged, landed all our fuel, and tugged again till midnight; all in vain. Early next morning we emptied the vessel of everything, by boat-loads, on a THE THIRSTY, AND THE THIRSTY QUENCHED. 75 sand-bank not far off, between the shore and an island ; there we squatted underneath the shadow of a pile of boxes, wondering if we should have to wait until they missed us at Khartoum, and watching the winding-up process being executed with continuous but unavailing energy. Martin and Warner bathed from the sandbank, a very ' crocodilish '-looking place. For myself, having escaped from a shark at Suakin, I did not wish to be reserved for a crocodile. Suddenly we see that the bow has gained half an inch, now an inch, another, and another; she is slowly but surely getting off. Now she is wound up to her anchor, and gaily afloat once more. By noon we are on board again, 'bag and baggage,' and the last cataract is passed. For a time all traces of cultivation are lost. We are passing through a rift in the mountain range of Gebel Gerri. On the western bank rises the abrupt granite mass Atschan, ' the thirsty,' and on the east Rauian, ' the thirsty quenched.' Such is the poetic native appellation of this range, which, by a graceful conceit, is supposed to quench its thirst as the river rushes through it, firmly held in its iron grip. Granite walls rise sheer from the water on either side, and, wherever a cleft of sand offered a snug bed, there was sure to be a crocodile taking his siesta. 76 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. Rocks scarcely rising above the surface make naviga tion an anxious thing for the reis. Emerging from the ravine above the cataract, of which we are now clear, we again pass through a most lovely archipelago of islets ; some comparatively large, and covered with a dense foliage of various tints, from which here and there pierced upwards the graceful, feathery palm, swaying in the breeze. Then, again, there were small vase-shaped rocks, just rising above the surface, richly tufted with a leafy crown. A few hours took us beyond these desert banks and through rich strips of cultivation, and with the groaning sakeeyehs on the banks, we drew near to Khartoum, and our voyage was now nearly ended. It had much impressed me. Who could have travelled such a distance without being struck with the majesty and grandeur of ' Pater Nilus,' the great historic river of the world ? As we neared the point of confluence, the separate currents became most marked. For a considerable distance the right bank is washed by a bluish current, the left by a sandy, white stream, now acknowledged to flow from the source of the great river. The Blue Nile, having its birth in the mountains of Abyssinia, is remarkably distinct in colour. For HOW ARABS TREAT STEAM ENGINES. 77 some distance after their junction, the waters of the two do not mix. Khartoum stands on the left bank of the Blue Nile, about a mile above the confluence. We pass camps on either side, and the eye wanders with pleasure over groves of palm-trees. Again, the sakeeyeh is at work. At some points they appear to have tried steam in place of oxen, and to have lament ably failed. I could count no fewer than three engines on the bank between the point and the town, rusty and disused. Probably, after a week, they became out of order for want of grease and cleaning, and the owner left them to their fate. 78 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER VII. KHARTOUM A GRAND REVIEW THE TOWN AND ITS POPULATION. When he saw the soldiers, too, execute their orders with such regularity, he grew still more desirous to become their commander. Xenophon. Our steamer had picked up the General by dint of going ahead all night, and great was the excitement when the two steamers arrived, the first flying the Pasha's flag. Most of the best houses are nearly at the water's edge. Beneath were swarms of ' nuggers ' and other craft, flying the flags of divers nations. Many were Greek. One or two were Dutch ; but most were Egyptian. Soldiers were drawn up on the landing-place. A band struck up the usual Khedivial Anthem, of which I was as tired as I suppose the reader is of hearing of it, and a salute was fired in honour of the English Pasha and his Staff. Passing through staring crowds of men of all colours, and wearing every imaginable costume, we marched in WE COMMENCE BUSINESS. 79 procession to the divan of the Governor. He received us with the usual coffee, and presented the various officials of the place, including Giegler Pasha, sent to look after the repression of the slave-trade, and the Austrian and Italian Consuls. Two capacious houses, built of sun-dried bricks, and blue wooden verandahs, belonging to the Government, were prepared and given over to General Hicks and his Staff. Ball practice was at once commenced with the regiments encamped to the west of the White Nile. Every shot fired at the target was under the personal supervision of one of us, and we took pains, as far as possible, to correct the malpractice of the men, such as leaning back instead of forward, jerking the trigger instead of pulling it steadily, firing up in the air (a common practice), and holding the rifle loosely and in a slovenly manner. On the first day of parade square was formed and faced inwards. The colours doubled to the centre where General Hicks and his Staff had taken up their position. The General then addressed the troops through Captain Evans, our interpreter : — ' I am desired by His Highness the Khedive to inform you that if you perform your duty faithfully and gallantly, so far from being left here in the Soudan, as it is reported you seem to expect, you will, 80 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. at the expiration of the campaign, be allowed to return to your homes in Egypt. I myself will take you back, and present you to the Khedive. I promise you this in His Highness's name. With the weapons in your hands, if you only use them properly, you cannot fail to be victorious over the enemy, who are for the most part only armed with rude weapons. All that is required of you is firmness and steadiness, and you must always win the day.' The troops evidently received this address with great satisfaction. The regimental colours and stan dard, under a guard of fixed bayonets, were then taken back at a sharp run. Again did we hear the Khedivial Hymn, and the first parade of General Hicks was dismissed. After every regiment had gone through a course of firing, the Staff daily superintended rocket, shell, and Nordenfeldt practice till our flotilla was in readiness to start for Kawa. Towards the end of our three weeks' ball-practice, Captain Forestier Walker joined us with the Norden- feldts. He had been left behind at Cairo to allow the men to go through a course of training with these weapons, then for the first time introduced into the Egyptian army. The whole Staff, with Giegler Pasha, Suleiman / Pasha, and a crowd of officials, attended the first day's WE ASTONISH THE NATIVES. 81 practice — or, rather, what should have been the first day's practice — but which turned out to be a fiasco. During their passage from Cairo, men and officers had completely forgotten their drill. When the guns were attempted to be brought into action, dire confusion reigned. Men ran against each other ; the' ground was strewn with cartridges ; hoppers were placed any where but where they ought to have been. No one appeared to have the slightest knowledge of how to feed, aim, or discharge the pieces. In the midst of all this, poor Walker — not knowing anything of the lan guage beyond the words of command — stood aghast. General Hicks thundered out, ' he had never seen such a disgraceful thing in his life,' and ordered Forestier Walker to remain for three days perpetually drilling his men in that sandy scorching camp, instead of returning with us to the comparatively 'blest abode' of Khartoum. I should add that no blame can be attached to Forestier Walker for this failure. He was shortly afterwards invalided, through sun stroke, and proceeded to England, but was destined to perish in the Soudan. He fell, fighting his guns gallantly, at El Teb. Khartoum, the capital of the Soudan, stands, as I be'fore said, on the Blue Nile, its other three sides being surrounded by ill-constructed, clumsily-built Si HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. ramparts of mud, without the least attempt at mili tary . engineering. Beyond them to the east is a long tract of sand reaching to the shores of the Nile. The beautiful groves of palm-trees extend along the bank of the Blue Nile to the point. The town itself is interspersed with trees, and, in the centre, are the beautifully laid out gardens of the Roman Catholic missionaries, whose cathedral— for there is a bishop here — and establish ment were founded by the Austrian Government some years ago. They have libraries, cloisters for nuns and sisters of mercy, who are well-born ladies, and a mission school. The gardens are irrigated by the sakeeyeh. There is no hotel or inn in the whole town, neither is there one in the whole of the Soudan, excepting Suakin. Travellers have either to lodge with a friend or ask the Mudir for a shelter. There is generally a large and very filthy courtyard sur rounded by chambers. Restaurants and places of refreshment, in the ordinary acceptation of the word, do not exist here, but there are at least a dozen Greek bakals' shops, where you may buy and drink on the premises almost any poison you like, from noxious stuff manufactured at Cairo, and labelled ' Hennessy's Three Star Cognac ' (why Hennessy should be singled out as the victim of these rascally counterfeits I cannot THE UBIQUITOUS BAKAL. conceive, Ekshaw and Martell are generally exempt from spurious imitations), to the coarsest mastic or raki. While on this subject, it may be observed that there is a notorious firm at Marseilles expressly devoted to the task of supplying poisonous mixtures, miscalled Cognac, to the Levant and Egypt. The Greek bakal flourishes from the Danube to the quator. I had no idea he would turn up at Khar toum, but I am told that is by no means the limit of his enterprise, and Livingstone found him in the heart of the Ujiji district. There are five or six bakals in Khartoum, and besides liquors, which may be con sumed ' on or off the premises,' and groceries, they are supplied with all kinds of requisites — from guns, knives, and pistols, to tooth-brushes — and I realised the old adage by actually buying an anchor and a packet of needles at the same bakal's shop. There are shopkeepers, too, belonging to other nations. They have gone through a series of vicissitudes before settling down in the place. There is a watchmaker and general dealer in stores — a Swiss, named Renaud — who entered the French army some years ago, then joined the army in Tunis, and gradually worked his way down here as a pedlar. There is one Italian firm importing good vermouth, harmless vino spumante, macaroni, and cheese. G 2 84 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. At the back of the town there is an enormous open space. You cross it and come to the bazaar, consist ing of booths in front of some large wholesale shops, where clothes, boots, and all sorts of outfitting may be obtained. The rest of the bazaar consists of a labyrinth of narrow streets lined with stalls having matting in front of them. These are owned by Arab and Syrian merchants and an occasional Greek. Alluding to these Greeks, one cannot help recalling to mind how like in their pushing enterprise they are to their ancestors, always going south, east, and west, never north or inland.1 It is almost impossible to calculate the population of Khartoum. The mud houses and beehive huts of the narrow, tortuous mud-walled streets are un numbered, and there is no municipal system which will permit of an exact census being taken. Probably the inhabitants, including slaves, may be reckoned at something like 60,000. Before the rebellion almost the whole of the Soudan drew its supplies of European and Indian merchandise from Khartoum. Even while we were there, when the greater portion of Kordofan was 1 I speak of the mass. The comparatively small number of Greek merchants established in England and Bussia form an insignificant minority. PRETTY MARKET GIRLS. 85 closed and Sennaar overrun by hostile tribes, there was a brisk business being done in the bazaars. There are female vendors of wood and milk, by no means unprepossessmg, with their well-chiselled features, shapely Hmbs, and hair plaited and decked with coral and gold. There are Soudan and Nubian negresses and pale-brown Egyptian damsels squatting down selling their muddy native beer (merissa), sour milk, khasheesh aaerg-soos, or liquorice water, henna, the red substance with which the Arabs dye their nails, and kohl, a powder used for darkening the eyebrows and eyelids. Very numerous are the tobacco-sellers and the dealers in iron crockery, and brass utensils. Strolling up and down, partly bent on business and partly on killing time, are Arabs, Egyptians and Greeks in many-coloured costumes, and the cafes are crowded with backgammon players. The town was a place of arms, the depot of the Khedivial army being there/ as well as an arsenal. There is also a dockyard for the Upper Nile steamers. So that Khartoum under the Khedivial administration is a Soudanese Woolwich and Chatham combined. The gardens in the town are numerous and spacious, and the river, after leaving the town, is lined with stately date-groves, but, beyond this, the immediate neighbourhood is sterile and sandy, and but scantilv cultivated. 86 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER VIII. OUR DAILY LIFE AT KHARTOUM. And there from morn till twilight bound, I felt the heavy hours toil round. Byron, Mazeppa. Our daily life at Khartoum was mapped out as follows : — At 5 a.m. we turned out, and after tub and coffee went on board the diminutive steamer lying a few yards away from our quarters and steamed down to Om-durman, on the Kordofan side of the Nile, a little below the point where the two Niles meet but do not mingle, as the sharply defined line between the two currents testifies. At Om-durman were encamped the troops which were to take part in the forthcoming campaign. Our morning's work consisted in superintending their ball-practice, and the course was rigidly gone through, each man coming under the personal super vision of a British officer, as before described. The scene was lively enough as each battalion marched out to the inharmonious braying of their key-bugles. THE GUARDSMAN SCORNS THE MULE. 87 As there would have been some difficulty in taking over our chargers with us, we were supplied with horses by the regimental officers. On one Sccasion there was a horse deficient. Colonel Farquhar found himself unprovided with a mount. I shall never forget the look of disgust with which the ex-Guards man in irreproachable patent leather boots withered an Egyptian officer ; who, in unsophisticated kindness of heart exclaimed, ' Malesh ! ' — Take my mule.' Poor Farquhar — than whom a smarter soldier never donned a red coat — never abated one jot of the minutiae of dress parade, even in the wilds. Needless to say, the proffered mount was refused with scorn ; and he declined leaving the water's edge until a horse was procured. We worked with the men until ten o'clock, and, notwithstanding the much-abused climate, were always ready for a hearty breakfast when we returned to our little mess-room. The afternoon we spent in writing, military drawing, or sketching. At five we turned out for our daily gallop outside the ramparts, then returned for a chat with our chief. General Hicks was always at home at this hour, and we came to look upon these little gatherings as a regular part of our plan of existence. Afterwards we made our 1 ' Malesh ' corresponds to the ' Zarrar yok ' of the Turks, mean ing ' Never mind,' and is introduced on every possible occasion. 88 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. way to our quarters and spent the mauvais quart - d'heure of Rabelais on the terrace overlooking the Nile. It was pleasant after the heat of the day to sit and watch the growing ' shadows of beauty ' as the sun sank to rest and crimsoned the dark waters of the Blue Nile. The exquisite ever-deepening tones of bank and stream are to be remembered, not described. Sun set on the Nile is a trite subject, but one of which it may be said in truth : — De hoc multi multa, omnis aliquid, nemo satis. At these ante-prandial reunions we cast aside all anxiety for the future and chatted of the present and the past, as we sipped vermouth and bitters or quaffed lager beer, in accordance with our individual tastes. We had a plentiful supply of German bottled beer. English beer we found heavy and not so suitable to the climate. These were the moments when we truly felt : — Ccelum non animum mutant qui trans mare currunt. We loved to wander back to the hunting field, the trout stream, the lonely Irish country quarters, even Aldershot field days, and last, but not least- town, the club, the ball-room, the park, and oyster suppers ' after the opera is over.' Greenwich, Rich- THE TAM-TAM'S CALL TO DINE. 89 mond, Hurlingham, and Lord's of pleasant memory, each afforded reminiscences ; and though I cannot remember that any one boasted, as Cowper says — His skill in coachmanship or driving chaise, In bilking tavern-bills and spouting plays, yet we all had little mcidents to recount ' by flood and field ' until ' that tocsin of the soul, the dinner bell,' or rather the tam-tam, called us up to our little mess-room. Khartoum society, it need scarcely be said, is very limited in its resources. The principal merchants are Signor Macialli and M. Marquet. Both these gentlemen were very useful to us, and rendered us aid in every way. We had the greatest respect for them. With very few exceptions, the rest of the traders were of the usual type of Levantines and Greeks, therefore the less said about them the better. M. Hanzel, the Austrian Consul, was a prominent figure among our Khartoum acquaintance. This gentleman had lived, I am afraid to say how many years, at Khartoum. When we were received by the Governor he was ' the cynosure of neighbouring eyes ' arrayed in an astounding uniform, made up of a red coat, with epaulettes of enormous growth, a long white waistcoat a la Sir Charles Grandison, 90 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. and blue overalls. He might have stepped out of a scene in a comedy of the last century, or he might have been a general officer on the boards of a trans pontine theatre. The most noteworthy among the residents during our stay was Mr. Schuver, the Dutch traveller, who had been on an exploring expedition in the Galla country at the head-waters of the Blue Nile. Poor Schuver was a great friend of the Soudanese, and was never tired of championing their cause. His devotion was ill-requited. He was pounded to death with clubs by the Dinkas on the Bahr-el-Ghazal. This occurred about the same time as the disaster of Kashgate. Mr. Schuver — a man of considerable property — had devoted himself to the arduous and perilous task of African exploration, and had con tributed much valuable information to the geography of the Blue Nile country previous to our arrival. He subsequently did the same on the Bahr-el-Ghazal, where he opened up new country, and his dis coveries were recently the theme of an address by Dr. Schweinfurth at a meeting of the Khedivial Geographical Society. It is not a little singular that Schuver's com panion in so many former adventures, Mr. O'Donovan, of the ' Daily News,' of whom more anon, should POOR O'DONOVAN. 91 have come to Khartoum, and that the two should have met after years of separation spent in wander ing, both to die violent deaths almost simultaneously, and in the same dark country, though from totally different causes — the massacre of poor Schuver hav ing nothing to do with the Mahdi's propaganda. O'Donovan and Schuver last parted at Constan tinople at the close of the Russo-Turkish war, during which Schuver was correspondent of the ' Standard.' O'Donovan went straight to Central Asia, where he subsequently made his name famous. Schuver, after wandering about Armenia and Kurdistan for some twelve months, returned to Europe, whence he pro ceeded to Africa. We found him living in an iso lated house among the palm-groves outside Khartoum. He had three Nile boats lying alongside, flying the Dutch flag. He frequently came in of an evening, and was always ready to discuss the Soudan question with warmth, even with acrimony. He was detained at Khartoum and not allowed to go up the Nile on account of his being suspected of supplying arms to the tribes. ' Rebels,' he used to say to me ; ' don't call them rebels, Colonel ! They are patriots ! ' Upon my suggesting that their patriotism had its principal motive in the maintenance of slavery, he would enter into a disquisition upon slavery as an institution 92 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. tending to prove the inalienable right of the tribes to its perpetuation, and the necessity of sanctioning it in the present condition of things. General Gordon's re-establishment of the slave traffic has to an extent supported this. In one thing at least he was prophetic. ' Do you think you are going to overcome them with the forces at your disposal ? ' He used frequently to exclaim, ' Never ! Your army will never return ! ' Little did we think how completely this prediction would be fulfilled. He used to complain to us that he was living in a state of siege on account of the marauding pro clivities of our Bashi-Bazouks ; and made us laugh one day when he told us that two Bashi-Bazouks, on predatory thoughts intent, were prowling about his premises. They came up to the door, and Schuver, who understood Turkish, heard one of them say, ' There is no one here ' (' Boorada kiviseh yok'). He jumped up and said, ' Yes ; there are a couple of revolvers.' The Bashi-Bazouks did not even wait to thank him for the information. They certainly were a lawless set of people, and were the cause of constant complaints until General Hicks had them marched over to the other side of the Blue Nile, and encamped there. Previous to that we THE BEST BOY IN THE REGIMENT. 93 had encamped a hundred Christian Bashi-Bazouks separately at their own request. These Bashi-Bazouks wounded several people at Khartoum, and had a playful habit of taking provisions from vendors, and, when asked for payment, pointing a pistol at the head of the applicant. ' Convey, the wise it call.' My Bashi-Bazouk servant brought me some fowls at a very low price. I asked him how he got them so cheap. Pointing to his pistol significantly, he ex claimed, ' Ben Bashi-Bazouk deyilim ? ' (' Am I not a Bashi-Bazouk ? ') Pistols, according to Bashi- Bazouk notions of commerce, are a great help in marketing. This man, according to his own infor mation, was the only one out of 700 who had not committed murder or some grave crime. Probably, mutatis mutandis, every man in the regiment would have made the same statement. A more interesting and less turbulent body of men were the hundred cuirassiers we found at Khartoum. They were without horses, but we afterwards mounted them. Very strange was it to come across the garb of the knights of old in these mail-clad men, with helmets having the one longitudinal bar over the nose. No thing of the kind exists in the countries which formerly rang with the exploits of Saladin and Cceur de Lion 94 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. and to find the relics of the Saracens we must go to the interior of Africa. We lived in a tumble-down house on the water's edge, formerly occupied by General Gordon, and Hicks lived in a small square off the river. Our little detachment mess — consisting of Martin, Massey, Warner, Dr. Rosenberg, and myself — gave a dinner-party to General Hicks four days before starting for Senaar. We made the most of our four bare walls and deal table. Martin drew designs on the walls in pencil ; it was a speciality of his, and he was very deft at it. Among them was the device, ' Soudan Field Force,' in a garter. Those designs remain to this day by last accounts, though the walls will echo no more to the laughter of those who dined with us that night — Hicks, Coetlogon, and Farquhar. I extemporised the menus by pasting writing-paper over the advertisement cards of a Cairo photographer. The cards had a sphinx engraved on the back, which elaborate and appropriate embellishment mystified our guests until the thing was explained. They could not imagine how we got hold of them at Khartoum. Champagne we had none, but in lieu of it a good supply of the mild and harmless ' vino spumante ' of Italy. This dinner is to be held in remembrance as the last time we all dined together, for Martin and A BANQUET TO THE GENERAL. 95 Forestier Walker went home sick, and Warner was sent with despatches to Ala'ieddin Pasha, thereby missing the Senaar Campaign. The market-place of Khartoum, a large, irregular open space, always afforded us an amusing promenade. The sheds composed of posts and matting, where the more costly goods are sold, and the open-air stores for the sale of cheaper produce, were invaded every after noon by crowds of vendors and purchasers, whose com plexions ran through all the gamut of colour, from the lemon-like tint of the Egyptian to the darkest ebon of Africa. Apart from imported articles were sour milk, fruit, vegetables, merissa, water, grease balls for the hair, tobacco, and a variety of home-made articles in iron, wood, cordage, and queer-shaped vessels, for which we were at a loss to assign a purpose. Gum is a large wholesale article of commerce : most of the wholesale trade in it is carried on in private houses ; and perhaps next to it, ivory and tamarinds, obtained from the Bagarra and the negro tribes to the south. Ostrich feathers and salt come in from Darfour. When the freshness of the surroundings had worn off, and we were beginning to weary of the mono tony of our life, I received one morning the following order :— 96 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. ' Memo. ' Chief of the Staff's Office, ' Khartoum : March 29, 1883. ' The following officers will hold themselves in readiness to proceed to Kawa by steamer to-morrow morning. The name of the steamer and hour of departure will be communicated hereafter. ' Lieut.-Col. the Hon. J. Colborne, ' Major Martin, ' Captain Massey. ' By order, ' H. de Coetlogon, Lieut.-Col., S.F.F.' WE START FOR THE FIELD. CHAPTER IX. FROM KHARTOUM TO KAWA. High in hope When, flushed with sanguine cheer and streamers gay, We cut our cable, launch into the world, And fondly deem each wind and star our friend. All in a darling enterprise embark'd — But where is he can fathom the event ? The Voyage of Life. I left Khartoum on Mareh 31, bound for Kawa, 150 miles up the White Nile. We ought to have gone off at six, but, as usual, nothing was ready ; delay after delay occurred. Men who had been put on board began to stray out again and cook their rations on the shore. By twelve (noon), all being ready, the horses having been put on board at last, off we went — the first move made in the Senaar campaign. It was on this occasion I had to purchase the anchor and packing needles referred to before, as one of the ' merkebs ' was short of those indispensable articles. The steamer carried 180 Egyptian troops, and had in tow a flat-decked vessel with the officers' 98 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. horses. At the same time, a ' merkeb ' with Egyptian officers, and eight others crammed with troops, set sail for the same destination. A ' merkeb ' is an open boat of about twenty-five or thirty tons, partially matted over at the stern, with a mast far forward which carries a huge lateen sail. Sailing against the current with a strong north wind, the vessels beat the steamers. We dropped down the river about half a mile, pass ing its groves of palms till the junction of the Blue and White Nile is reached. Turning the point, we had to struggle against the current for ten minutes without gaining an inch. Gradually we- crept on, till at last we were fairly steaming up the White Nile. On our right was a picturesque camp of Bashi-Bazouks, their green standard planted in front. This was the same battalion that preceded us through the desert to Suakin. They crowded to the shore to wish us God speed, while their ' fool ' ran along the beach, play fully pushing men into the water, jumping over the backs of others, and going through a variety of antics, evidently to the great amusement of the soldiers. In the distance, on our left, stretching for about two miles, lay Khartoum, fantastic and pic turesque, with' its minarets, gardens, groves, earth- walls, ditches, and ramparts, to prevent a sudden A BEAUTIFUL MIRAGE. 99 incursion of the enemy. Well we knew that between us and it lay a bare tract of sand ; yet we saw dis tinctly a sheet of water — a vast lake — extending under the walls, and in which they were clearly reflected. Again the mirage. In the desert we had often seen a sea before us, in which appeared to be islands and ships ; but here we had an actual material town, not of ' such stuff as dreams are made of,' reflected in an illusory lake. Passing the barren sand, we soon find the bank on our left beautifully wooded with groves of mimosa. Further on we come to a green, park-like plain, studded with shrubs and trees, reminding one of home scenery. One is struck by the sweet meadow-like appearance of the river banks, with their luxuriant sedge of emerald green, relieved by bright yellow patches of sorghum — the soffra of the Khartoum market- — with ears at least ten inches long and five in diameter. The river itself and its banks were alive with water-fowl, big and little — from the vast clouds of duck and the pretty little Egyptian goose (Chenalopex cegyptiacus) so faithfully portrayed in ancient mural paintings, to the clumsy waddling pelican, and the gigantic and gloomy heron of these waters — an exaggerated English heron. Shovellers, widow-ducks, the ibis, and the Balearic crane, together with other birds H 2 loo HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. whose names I could not learn, made up this heterogeneous feathered assemblage. Mingling in the crowd, hopped the vulture and the kite, while innumerable sand-pipers flitted about, uttering their shrill cry. From time to time, in the midst of them all, we saw a huge crocodile, seemingly asleep, and utterly regardless of them, as they of him. A rifle ball, if it does not hurt him, quickly makes him ' leave that,' — as the triumphant Hibernian exclaimed he had compelled- the hare to do, after firing at her and miss ing her, as she sat on her form. A splash is heard, and he disappears. You may hit him in vain on his coat of armour ; the eye, and the fleshy folds of the shoulder, are the only vulnerable spots. However, he affords capital practice. Another cold-blooded denizen of these districts is the iguana, who creeps lazily about the bank. We came to another Nilotic Archipelago, groups and strings of islets, here in a stream twice as wide as at Cairo, at a guess. Sunt trees grow in great profusion here. They frequently look as though they had been planted symmetrically in rows. Here, too, we came across the famous ambatch (Herminiera), one of the most extraordinary growths of African vegetation. It is found in much larger quantities higher up the river. Everyone who has read a book of Nile travel will be THE FEATHER-WEIGHT AM BATCH. ior familiar with the great grass barriers, or ' sud,' which form such an obstacle to navigation. These barriers are formed by ambatch, which takes root in the water, and consequently spreads with great rapidity. Float ing islands of it get packed together and form a ' sud.' The mechanical process is exactly the same as that producing pack-ice in Polar seas. The most extraordinary quality of ambatch is its lightness. Its specific gravity is much less than that of cork, and this lightness adapts it to raft-building. Upon these rafts the enemy subsequently tried to escape to Kordofan at the ' Ford ' higher up, but were intercepted by Hicks Pasha's little steamer armed with Nordenfeldts, which played great havoc as the vessel came up just in the nick of time. The ambatch grows to a height of fifteen or twenty feet, and the rafts are made from the stems. I believe I do not exaggerate when I say I could carry on my shoulders a raft capable of supporting four oxen. Where else is this strange weed to be found? Nowhere, I believe. ' Africa,' Aristotle truly says, 'has always something new to show.' We glided by Mount Adelli, a long low ridge of sandstone. The sun was slowly sinking, ' not as in northern climes obscurely bright.' The desert sunsets were gorgeous without contrasts, whereas on the Nile 102 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. everything is reflected. You have a foreground of purple and orange, rippling water, and golden glitter ing sand, with wild-fowl swooping in dark masses reflected in the liquid mirror, and a middle distance of yellow grass, contrasting with the purple shade of the mimosa. In the distance, behind the pearly grey of the horizon, the golden sun sinks in a crimson glow blending with the violet above, which again softens into azure and emerald. Then comes the after-glow, which, from an intense orange, fades into a full deep rose tint. Then the shadows from the bank re- mirrored in the water, reproduce in the silent current the last shadows of evening. From after-glow to night there is but a lapse of a few silent moments. At dark, as is the usual custom with all Nile steamers, we drop anchor, not, as on our way to Khartoum, alongside the bank, but in the centre of the stream — a precautionary measure, for we are now approaching the enemy's country. A good watch is kept. Sentries are placed above and below, and the soldiers lie down in the most orderly manner, packed as thick as sardines on the deck above, which runs flush from bow to stern after the manner of American steamers, the officers' cabins being under it. And now silence reigns on board, except when the low and not un musical evening, prayer is chanted in monotone. Rats SUNSET ON THE NILE. do not run over our faces as they did on board the ' Jafferiah,' but cockroaches are extremely lively. At daybreak ' go ahead ' is the order, for English words of command prevail on the Nile, as they do on board ships of every flag, a tribute to the predominance of British influence in nautical matters. The shores on the eastern side are here and there beautifully wooded and perfectly flat. Long strips of verdure at the water's edge, about a hundred yards in width, are seen covered by browsing flocks of goats, and occasionally a donkey. The camel, too, is there, asserting his position as he ever does, with his super cilious turn of the neck and head, coming from the thirsty interior for his ration of water. The stream now becomes broader, intercepted by small islands of extreme fertility, cultivated by Don- golowee colonists, on which all sorts of edible herbs and vegetables abound — garlic, onions, a kind of spi nach, beans, radishes, millet, lentils, saffron, tobacco, sesame, mustard, the castor-oil plant, the water-melon and sugar-cane all flourish here. Water-melons grow wild here, and Dr. Schwein furth, the most accomplished and laborious of African travellers, claims this region for the original home of that widely-diffused fruit. As we passed sandy shoals we were sure to see :o4 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. two or three crocodiles basking in the sun, and made good practice at them. We reached Gocena, an Arab village on the east bank, when the Governor of Khartoum came on board ' to make his salutations and present us with two sheep. He was on his way, by land, to Kawa. Again we come to fertile islands. We pass Gredana on the east bank, and afterwards Greassa. A little later on we reached Wadi Shellai, or Hellat Shellai, a friendly village. Two steamers and several merkebs, that started with troops a day or two before us, are there. The men were allowed to stretch their legs for an hour or so, and the beach presented quite an animated appearance. Everything edible was bought up — eggs, poultry, and sheep. We were soon under way, and a perfect gale sprang up ; I had no idea there could be such a squall on the Nile. The native craft behind us, with their lateen sails swelling to the wind, dashed gallantly ahead. At noon we reached Duem, a garrison and village on an island. Here I landed with a despatch from General Hicks for Said Bey, the officer commanding. The bands on board and on shore played the Khedivial Hymn, and the troops presented arms. A ' divan ' was held in a little mud house, when, THE TRAITOR PASHA GORDON SHOT. 105 instead of the eternal coffee, glasses of delicious sherbet were handed round. Said Bey, and the Governor of the district, entreated that a battalion might be left with them, as they had the best in formation that they were to be attacked next morning by 15,000 of the enemy. This wish was not acceded to, but they were told to trust in God and keep their powder dry. It turned out afterwards that the reports were absurdly exaggerated. This Said Bey, commanding at Duem, is the Said Pasha who, together with another, was shot at Khartoum for treachery, by order of General Gordon, subsequent to the fight at Halifiyeh. Although our uniform included a white helmet, I landed in a tarboosh — rather a foolish proceeding, perhaps, under so fierce a sun ; but as the Soudan Field Force uniform was unknown at Duem, I thought it would be more fitting to appear in the national headgear. The tarboosh, or fez — as it is called in Turkey— absurd and dangerous as it is in a hot climate, is adopted by Mussulmans, as it allows for the fulfilment of the Mohammedan observance in prayer of touching the earth with the forehead ; the brim of a hat would not meet with this requirement. The koofiyeh, or head-shawl, should always be worn io5 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. with it, or, at least, a turban. As it is worn by Egyptian officials and townspeople, it is as ugly as it is unfitted for the climate. We were now eighteen miles from Kawa, and steaming along between banks highly cultivated and with an ever-increasing population and numerous villages. Upon rounding a point we came in sight of a small forest of masts, and we knew we were approaching our destination. All along we had been practising at the timsehs,] but now we forbore, on the left bank, at least ; for we had come to a friendly population, and were afraid our bullets might hit them or their cattle. I say friendly in the same sense as the slums around barracks in Ireland are ostentatiously loyal, where every pothouse and tavern is either the King's or Queen's Arms, or something royal. These are the very villages whose inhabitants are now blockading Gordon. As we approached Kawa the Nile narrowed; be sides which, the waterway was considerably reduced in breadth by a large well-cultivated island inhabited by a colony of Dongola men. On this island wheat, melons, dhurra, and cotton are cultivated with success. 1 Crocodiles. WITHIN TOUCH OF THE ENEMY. io7 The river was here very foul, from the accumu lated filth of the camp. The fort itself had only been recently erected. The banks approaching it were very prettily wooded, and grassy to the water's edge ; they were as green as an English lawn. The water-birds, although so close to quasi-civilisa- tion, held their own in thousands ; especially the beautiful little White Ibis, who evidently knows he is too pretty for anybody to have the heart to hurt him. The merkebs laden with troops had passed us at Duem ; and when we came up the men were already disembarking, so that the scene was very animated. Crowds of negroes were jabbering on the shore, along which ovens were built, dug deep into the ground, and wells for filtering the filthy Nile water. We, the vanguard of Hicks's Senaar Army, had arrived at the last point held by Egyptian troops this side of the Bahr Ghazal; between it and us both banks of the Nile were in the hands of our fierce enemy the Bagarra. io8 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER X. KAWA — PREPARATIONS FOR FIGHTING. Has our General met the enemy ? They lie in view ; but have not spoke as yet. Coriolanus. We landed at six in the evening, and were received with the usual honours, the troops lining the bank and presenting arms. The garrison was delighted to see us. Hussein Bey, the commander, who had fought his way up from Khartoum, received us with true Turkish heartiness. I may here remark that one is everywhere struck by the superior mien of the Turks and Circassians, and their aptness for command. Egyptian officers are more than useless. Our success was greatly helped by the Turkish officers, who had replaced the Egyptian officers in Arabi's army, and I do not hesitate to assert that, had our men been officered by Egyptians, that success would have been greatly jeopardised. A Turk is a born military commander, and these are the men Arabi wished to oust. TWO TO COMMAND THREE THOUSAND, log Major Martin, who was suffering from dysentery, became much worse on our arrival here. Contrary to my advice, with indomitable pluck, he determined to land. He is a man of unusually powerful physique, a model cavalry officer, and an accomplished and fearless sportsman. Pluck and endurance were of no avail, however, as I could see, to my sorrow, for I felt we were losing a valuable officer and excellent comrade. The next morning I was summoned to his hut. I found him in a prostrate condition, and he said, ' I am too ill to stay any longer.' I immediately ordered steam to be got up, sending a despatch to General Hicks, stating that I considered him too ill to stay. Now I and Massey were left alone, the sole Eng lishmen among three thousand men, in an isolated spot : on the east, the far-stretching woods and fertile plains of Senaar ; on the west, the thirsty wastes of Kordofan ; to the south, not far distant, the home of the lion and the elephant, and the utter savage. We were strongly entrenched, and had five bat talions — three within the fort, and two without. We brought two battalions up with us in nuggurs. One hundred and eighty soldiers had accompanied me on board the steamer. General Hicks brought up the rest of the troops on April 6. We had, in addition, iio HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. half a battalion of negroes. Our artillery consisted of five guns and two Nordenfeldts. As General Hicks was on the point of starting up the river to make a reconnaissance, some friendly sheikhs informed us that a boat had been fired upon two hours from Kawa. In consequence, the General decided to delay until the following morning, in order to take the two Nordenfeldts on board, and pile tents on deck for protection. This done, he started, taking with him Farquhar and Evans. Martin and Forestier Walker were invalided to Khartoum, and de Coetlogon went to the same place with despatches. The following letter to the ' Daily News ' will convey to the reader my impressions at the time it was written : — ' Kawa : April 16. ' The heat here is intense, and the odours horrible. The thermometer is 120 in the tents. General Hicks Pasha, Colonel Farquhar, and Captain Masseyproceed to-morrow up the river about forty-five miles in a steamer, to take possession of the ford between Senaar and Kordofan, by the island of Abba. They will probably land and entrench themselves. They take with them 200 soldiers, a " Gatling," two " Norden feldts," and one seven-pounder mountain gun. On Thursday next, the army here (leaving behind. 1,000 NEWS OF THE MAHDI. men to garrison the fort) will march under the command of Suleiman Pasha to attack the enemy, entrenched forty-five miles up the river et Jebel-Ain, some distance above the ford. Colonel Colborne and Colonel de Coetlogon go with him as staff officers. ' The Egyptian force, which is about 5,000 strong, has four Nordenfeldts. The enemy are said to be in force to the number of 20,000 men. There is a fort protecting the ford, said to mount four guns, which General Hicks's steamer will engage.' ' Later. ' News has just reached us that Duem, twenty miles below this place, was attacked yesterday, but the enemy was repulsed, several being killed. Hicks . Pasha has changed his plan of leaving for Jebel-Ain (the ford I spoke of) this evening, but goes down to Duem first, to get particulars and examine the prisoners; but there is no alteration regarding the march of the army up the east bank. Several nuggurs will go with us. The enemy are all Bagarra ' Arabs. ' The other day I got into conversation with an Arab merchant who had lately come from Kordofan. He asserted that Mahomet Achmet, the so-called " Mahdi," disclaims to-day any divine authority or 1 ' Bagarra ' means cattle. HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. mission, simply proclaims himself Sultan of the Soudan, and has promised freedom to all who have been slaves. This is a rather astounding compact to be entered into by one who, it is notorious, is backed by slave-hunters, slave-merchants, and by slave-owning sultans, such as those of Kordofan, Darfour, and Senaar, who lost their thrones upon the conquest of the Soudan by the Egyptians. It is evidently a card played against the Khedive's pro clamation promising liberty to all slaves, and pro tection in the future to all who owe allegiance to him. My informant observed that this Mahomet Achmet, a Dongola man, had formerly followed the trade of a carpenter and joiner, and had made various articles of furniture for him. ' The village of Kawa is in ruins ; but within 800 yards Colonel Hussein, who fought his way up here, has built a square fort, the river forming the fourth side. It is very strong, though not constructed ac cording to the canons of military engineering, being without redans, traverses, &c. ; nor could the ditch be swept in any possible way. At the angles there are two bastions ; in the middle of the square there is a tower looking exactly like the picture of the Tower of Babel, in the course of construction. The men line the parapets day and night ; behind A NARROW ESCAPE FROM THE GALLOWS. 113 them are their mud huts. Outside the bridge is a rudely-constructed gallows. Two captured natives, supposed to be spies, had a narrow escape from hanging. They were found prowling near with spears in their hands, but they have been released for certain reasons. The river presents a very animated scene, being crammed with " nuggurs," which have brought troops and provisions.' 114 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER XL OUR DAILY LIFE IN KAWA. I cannot tell what you and other men Think of this life. — Shailespeare. The following extract from my journal will, perhaps, give some idea of our daily life, after the visit of General Hicks, who, in consequence of my reporting we were short of provisions, went back to Khar toum : — ' Kawa Fort, April 20, 1883.— This place is built on ground sloping to the Nile. It is surrounded by a fosse. There are two entrances — one on the north, another on the east. The village of Elwis, half a mile away from the, fort, is quite deserted. As I walked through it, the scorched hearth-stones, the newly-gathered firewood, the partially-planted plots, the no longer groanmg sakeeyeh, the half-emptied hand-mill and scattered dhurra, induced a feeling of melancholy akin to pity for those whose A DESERTED VILLAGE. 115 Every pleasure past Hung round the bowers, and fondly looked their last, on this " Deserted Village " of the Bahr-el-Abiad.' Outside the fort feed the sheep belonging to the numerous and motley garrison of camp followers and the friendly natives of the island opposite. They are carefully driven within the zareeba at night. Beyond this, near the water's edge, is the deserted village of Elwis, just noticed, and a plain covered with scrub and acacia trees of all sizes, extending, on all sides, as far as the eye can see. Here a sportsman might have a good day with gazelle, plover — grey and black — the greater and lesser bustard, and hares ; though it is considered to be dangerous to go alone. It is suggested to us by the Egyptian officers that these woods are full of malignants, and that some day they will pounce upon one of us. However, all I can say is, I have frequently ridden out, both alone and attended by syces (grooms) or mounted Bashi- Bazouks, and have never seen a man, though I came across plenty of footmarks of men and beasts. These were made by natives, who drive their cattle long distances by night to the river, and return before dawn. These tracks were frequently pointed out to me by my faithful syce, whom I had brought from Cairo, 1 2 116 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. with the exclamation Baya ! ' On our west lies the Nile, and an island about half a mile long, inhabited by about two thousand Dongolowee colonists — indus trious husbandmen, who look to us for protection, and who are occasionally molested by the hostile tribes. It was only the other day that a party of Bashi-Bazouks, cutting wood there, were fired upon by the marauding Bagarras. At daybreak the merry little cornet-a-piston bands of the different regiments sound the reveil. All is at once life and animation. The entire garrison, which have lined the ramparts during the night, retire to their huts just behind, leaving a sufficient number of sentries. At the present, myself and Captain Massey are the only English officers in the fort, the General having had to go again down the Nile on urgent business. Rumours that Duem had been attacked caused him to proceed at once to the support of that garrison, taking with him the rest of his Staff, and 200 Bashi-Bazouks. Of a morning, we generally go for a gallop across the plain, either alone or with syces behind us carrying rifles, on the look-out for gazelle in the brushwood, and return about half-past eight. Up to this hour the air is delicious, and we enjoy a breakfast of chy (tea), eggs, 1 Corruption of Bagarra. NEW-LAID EGGS. 117 and dhurra-bread. By-the-by, I ordered a couple of eggs the other morning, and was surprised at seeing under my nose two, bigger than any turkey's I had ever seen. Before chipping the shell and tasting, I thought I might as well inquire as to the cause of my being so much more liberally supplied at the same price — a piastre — than on previous mornings. ' Turkeys must be larger and cheaper than in England,' I soliloquised. I was informed that the eggs in question were very cheap and plentiful — indeed, they were timseh's, and very ' tyeeb.' So the black servant said. Now a timseh is a crocodile, and tyeeb means good. With torrid heat, And vapour as the Libyan air adust, Began to parch. — Milton. Soon after breakfast a change comes over us ; about ten the most fearful scorching blasts set in ; the heat becomes terrific. You feel as if you could not breathe : as if you were at the mouth of a fiery furnace. That is the only idea I can give of it. The few Englishmen who have been here will agree with me. When you are on board a dahabeeah in mid stream, you are comparatively cool ; but shut up in a fort ! Well, the sensation baffles description. The perspiration pours down in torrents as I write ; my 118 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. mouth is parched up, and as dry as a brickbat with the volumes of sand pouring into my beehive. The water is befouled and muddy, and thirst is augmented rather than assuaged by it. The water of the White Nile is supposed to superinduce dysentery. I see from the opening of my beehive hut the poor sentries huddling under shelter. They are placed nearly as thickly as by night. This seems to be the Egyptian military idea, and it is hopeless to interfere with them on this point. Without a swarm of sentinels about two yards apart they do not feel secure, and one must supplement them by utterly useless pickets all the day. Dr. Russell, I remember, in the Crimea, used to draw comparisons between our dull silent camps, especially that of the Light Division (where, in obe dience to Sir G. Brown's Peninsular theories, no bugles were allowed to be used), and those of our lively neigh bours and allies. All I can say is that the French bivouacs ought to be called dull in comparison to those of my friends around me at this moment, who trumpet, bugle, and ' tam-tam ' all day long and the greater part of the night — that is, at every relief. While the sentries are being roasted at their posts, the garrison which has kept watch during the night retires to the mud huts behind the ramparts and the A VIOLET SKY. 119 men enjoy a sound sleep through the day, broken only by their two meals — one early in the morning con sisting of onions, dhurra, biscuit, and lentils ; the other in the evening, when they occasionally stew meat, which has been pretty regularly served out to them here. The day goes on pretty well until one. You can read, write, or sketch, but in another hour the heat mcapacitates you for any exertion — mental or physical. You simply endure till the afternoon is spent — then for a gallop across the plain, returning to see a most magnificent sunset beyond the winding Nile, studded with a hundred masts. After gazing at one of these glorious aspects of tropical nature last night, on turning round to the east I was astonished at the intense violet of the sky, reaching to the horizon, contrasting with the far-stretching yellow plain. If this effect were to be accurately painted, it would be denounced as simply false to nature, and, in fact, a painter's exaggeration. My servant, a Soudanese, is a capital cook, having been, for many years, employed by the Austrian Roman Catholic Mission, the members of which, it appears, know how to live. He was taken to Naples as a boy, baptized, and educated for the mission, the idea being to ordain him and send him among the natives, but this career seems to. have been checked. 120 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. At Khartoum he got into considerable debt to a Mus sulman, who forewent the debt on the condition of his returning to the faith of Islam. He did so ; but shortly after was got hold of again by the priests, who sent him to Suakin as servant to one of them. I found him there, anxious but afraid to return to his wife and family at Khartoum. He dared not go there alone after the rather shady little trick he had played on his confiding creditor, but he at once volunteered to come as a servant under my protection. I got much information out of him, as he has been three times in this part of the country with missionaries. He tells me all the natives here who go about and mix with us in the little bazaar are enemies and spies to a man, except the islanders opposite —the Dongolese before mentioned. Well, there is not much appetite for dinner, espe cially as everything is mixed up with sand, and one is tortured by an insatiable thirst, for which cold tea is the best palliative. At eight all the little cornet-a-piston bands of the different battalions strike up and play for half an hour some really pretty wild Arabic airs. The reduc tion of these strange melodies to a regular musical score must have been a difficult task for their late Italian bandmasters. SENTRIES TAKEN GREAT CARE OF. 121 The black regiments beat their tattoo with ' tam tams,' intermingled with unearthly shrieks and brays from brass instruments and horns. We now ride out and visit the outlying pickets, who, being rather in a state of ' funk,' take care to be on the alert. Before our arrival there were no outlying pickets, as Hussein Pasha naively said ' the men might get killed ' — mais nous avons change tout cela. When we got here we found they looked upon outlying pickets as an ab surdity. In opposition to all received notions of military precautions, they withdraw them at sunset. The present nights are so gloriously moonlit that we can spare our horses in going the rounds of the pickets and sentries. Captain Massey and I walk round the ramparts amid the recumbent but wide-awake soldiers, and thence with good glasses see the pickets and their chain of sentries on the qui vive all round. Of course they are visited during the long night. Before the moonlight nights we used to see enormous fires along the horizon, pro bably lit by the enemy to prevent surprise. By day we saw columns of smoke. One morning, accom panied by a mounted escort of Bashi-Bazouks, I rode some miles towards this smoke, over a plain of yellow grass and brushwood, and saw numerous tracks of men, cattle, and camels, but not a single 122 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. human being. The men then complained that their ponies could go no further. I insisted, however, upon pushing on. My men were evidently averse to further investigations. They declared they could descry a large number of mounted men. I could dis cern what seemed to be a large body creeping on to my front and flank. My men had become very impatient, and I thought it expedient to retire. We returned to the fort about mid-day. The heat by night in the hut becomes so in sufferable, that I take out my rug and lie on the ground outside, when I feel a most refreshing breeze. It is delightful to feel cold just for three hours — a perfect luxury. In a shirt and pyjamas, I lie awake on my back gazing up at the firmament, unequalled in brilliancy in any part of the world. About four, one drops asleep, or rather is lulled to sleep by the very pretty reveil played by the bands. This is played as a kind of warning, for there is no stir in camp for another hour. At 5.30 we are in the saddle ready for a reconnoitre with the General, who, when he is here, lands from the steamer and meets his horses on the shore, but frequently he is up and down the river in the ' Ismailia,' Sir Samuel Baker's old boat, now armed with Nordenfeldts and carrying seventy Bashi- NORDENFELDTING THE BULLOCKS. 123 Bazouks for reconnoitring purposes. The other day he made an expedition twenty-five miles south, taking' with him two Nordenfeldts, 200 Bashi- Bazouks, Colonel Farquhar, and Captain Massey. They had not proceeded twenty miles before they were fired at from the west shore. They replied, and knocked over some cattle. The Bashi-Bazouks landed and brought them off with great glee. What damage the Nordenfeldts and rifles did to the enemy could not be ascertained, as the shots came from the bush. Some shells were dropped into the villages. The ' Ismailia ' could go no further as the skipper had no more wood, otherwise the General intended to have taken possession of the ' Ford ' about forty miles above this. The ' Ford ' is the great link of communication between Senaar and Kordofan. Just as he was ascending the river to do this, on the following day, serious news arrived from Duem. This garrison stated they had been attacked, but had repulsed the enemy, so the General immediately turned his head and steamed off to the succour of the supposed beleaguered troops. On arrival it ap peared there had been parties of the enemy prowling about, but that they had been attacked by the Bashi- Bazouks, who killed some and took three prisoners. These are now here. If we had left them to the 124 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. tender mercies of their captors it would have fared ill with them, but we have seen that they are not tortured with tight ropes and that they have food and water. I had heard they had been thrown down the hold in chains. When I remonstrated, the soldiers replied : ' They would have treated us far worse.' Two of them were perfectly black, ill- looking fellows, said to be slaves, but the third was a handsome, light olive-coloured youth, with a very intelligent face, which wore a touching expression of dejection. I could not help feeling sorry for him. I think I have gone round the clock at Kawa, so I conclude. OUR STEAMER. 125 CHAPTER XII. PREPARATIONS FOR THE ADVANCE. As proper men as ever trod upon neats' leather. Shakespeare. The following letter, reprinted from the 'Daily News,' will serve as an introduction to the chapter, which deals with the incidents of our advance on Jebel-Ain : — ' Kawa : April 23. ' Four battalions and a half, with four Norden feldts, leave Kawa to-morrow morning at daybreak, accompanied by the English officers, Colonel Col borne and Colonel de Coetlogon, of General Hicks Pasha's staff. General Hicks commands the whole expedition, but he has gone on by river to secure the ford between Kordofan and Senaar, and ultimately to make a landing and entrench himself some miles above it. He took with him 200 Bashi-Bazouks and two Nordenfeldt guns. The sides of the steamer were boarded with the wood of the country, so hard 126 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. that a plank three inches thick would resist any bullet at 600 yards. The boiler is on deck; so, of course, if there are four guns, and ramparts thrown up, as is reported, at the ford, and they do manage to hit the boiler, things would be the reverse of smooth. I expect, however, that the General will run by the fort, and easily effect a landing higher up, where he would await our arrival. We shall then proceed together to attack the enemy's entrenchments. It is reported that the natives are there as "thick as ants," 30,000 strong ; but I think our troops will be! well able to turn them out of their nest. We march near the river in open column, ready to form square at any moment. The Egyptian General is named Suleiman Pasha, and the English and Egyptian officers will work in concert together, under the im mediate command, as I before said, of General Hicks Pasha. Mr. Marcopoli, formerly storekeeper to Sir S. Baker, accompanies our expedition as agent of he Egyptian Government on behalf of the suppression of slavery. ' The country in front and on the left flank will be well scoured by the camel corps and mounted Bashi-Bazouks. It is principally brushwood (mi mosa) interspersed with long yellow grass ; here and there a vast plain intervenes. Forty-five miles have THE GENERAL'S TACT. 127 to be traversed ; this will be marched in three days. The troops are in excellent spirits, and confident of success. General Hicks has managed to get all the troops under his command paid up to the day, and this has had a wonderful effect in making the poor fellows have confidence in their English officers. Most of them, if not all, fought at Tel-el-Kebir, but they don't bear any grudge on account of this ; they are proud of being commanded by their former victors. Obedience is implicit. The Egyptian offi cers, too, high and low, are on the very best of terms with their English comrades, thanks to the tact of General Hicks — who is just the man for the expedition, firm, but courteous to all. The officers of high rank are generally of Turkish extraction. ' Quite a weird scene presents itself from my hut door. Just over the parapet in front stands up in the full moonlight a rude clumsily-made gallows, with a noose dangling in the midnight breeze. Around is a dreary plain. One is reminded of the old illustrations in the histories of our highwaymen, a gallows by moonlight being a favourite one. Then nearer are the sentinels, gazing out into the wide expanse. I forgot to explain that the gallows is there for the hanging of spies. It has not been em ployed since our arrival, but the rope gives the idea 128 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. of having had a candidate. All around my hut are baggage-camels, and their drivers, asleep ; they are ready for to-morrow's march. Every tent inside the fort is struck, and officers and men sleep on the ground ; and a pleasant sleep it is, far preferable to that in a hut or tent. The Tower of Babel, with its one gun, hovers over us. The islanders never seem to sleep ; I can hear their perpetual singing and " tam-tamming" from this hut.' WE START FOR JEBEL-AIN. 129 CHAPTER XIII. ON THE MARCH. Thus far into the bowels of the land Have we marched on without impediment. Shakespeare. After sweltering three weeks at Kawa, we received orders to advance on Jebel-Ain. We left at seven o'clock on the morning of April 24. We were to have started at five o'clock, but, as usual, it was impossible to get off without delay. Time would appear to possess no value to the people of this country. The work of loading the camels was long and troublesome. We carried no tents with us, and De Coetlogon and I, although we were entitled to tents, took none with us for the sake of example. The only two in our camp were those of Suleiman Pasha and Marcopolo Bey, who came with us as interpreter and adviser, on account of his intimate knowledge of the K 1 30 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. country. We marched out of the fort to the dis cordant strains of the bands of the black troops, who were left behind to guard the fort. The strange medley of sound evolved from the horns and tam tams of the negroes was not without a certain wild rhythm which harmonised with our surroundings, and gave local colour to the wild scene. I may state here that we had not, with the exception of camp-followers, a single black with us on this march. The bulk of our army consisted of Arabi's old troops, to which were added a contingent of Bashi-Bazouks and a handful of mounted Soudanese. Hardly had we quitted the enceinte, when, to my surprise, Sulei man Pasha formed square. My orders from General Hicks were to march in open column, and De Coetlo gon and I represented this to the Pasha. Suleiman told us it was impossible to carry out this order ; that our men would never be able to form square quick enough if attacked. He was right. Our great square marched that day through mimosa scrub, over ground reticulated by fissures caused by the contraction of the soil by the hot sun after the waters of the High Nile had receded. The ground had the appearance and consistency of hard biscuit clay. We kept to the Nile bank, and in the distance we could get glimpses at the nivea vela of our little fleet . of nuggurs, laden THROUGH WAIT-A-BIT. 131 with provisions, and scudding along before the fresh northerly breeze which always blows at this season. We were glad to see them, as they gave us a sense of companionship, and might prove a dernier ressort. An outer quasi-square was formed by the Soudanese on camels, the only advance-guard, rear-guard, and flank-patrols we had. The horizontally-poised heads of the camels in the distance was always a welcome sight to us as we threaded our way through the brush wood. Our progress was continually hindered by the thorny scrub, composed of a plant which must be first-cousin to the wait-a-bit bush of the Cape. Guns, camels, and mules were perpetually getting hitched and clogged. I never saw such an apparently hopeless tangle. We had with us about twenty Soudanese on active little ponies. We ought to have had a hundred. I was on a Board two or three days before our de parture, and we had to condemn eighty out of the hundred on account of incurable sore backs caused by the odious Egyptian saddle during the march from Khartoum to Kawa. From time to time we passed ruined villages, their only visible tenants being sinister-looking vultures. who fluttered about them like evil spirits. At noon we halted, and De Coetlogon and myself partook of a scanty lunch of sardines and bottled beer K 2 132 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. At two our bugles rang out the advance ; we sprang into our saddles and continued the toilsome march. By five we had reckoned upon reaching an in trenched camp. Its garrison had been massacred a year before. But the poor men could go no further. They had, many of them, been cooped up for months at Kawa, which had told on them. Several were suffering from sunstroke ; all were weary and foot sore. We halted hard by a deserted village, not resembling Goldsmith's in any respect, save in loneli ness. Zareebas were formed, and after visiting the sentries De Coetlogon and I luxuriated in the ever-to- be-praised preserved chocolate and milk — a boon to all campaigners. The only two European officers we had with us were Lieut. Morris, in charge of the Nordenfeldts, and an Austrian officer named Mattiaga. These two we directed to visit the sentries in turn during the night. We were now well in the enemy's country, and knew not what a moment might bring forth. About eleven o'clock we lay down on the ground in our cloaks. There is, in truth, no more refreshing sleep to be had in the world than that which over takes one at night, in this climate, after a long day's march, with no other covering than the intense blue ANYTHING BUT STILLY NIGHT. 133 canopy of heaven. There are no mosquitoes to trouble you, although there is the possibility that you may Wake to anguish From a burning wound, inflicted by a serpent, a scorpion, or a centipede. Although we were close to the Nile no dew fell, and we were under no apprehension of awaking in the morning drenched and in a fever. I cannot say we reposed amid ' solemn stillness.' The howling of jackals, the shriek of night-birds, and the occasional snorts and snarls of the camels, whose gaunt forms loomed through the dusk as they wandered like ghouls about the camp, all added their quota to the ' voices of the night,' as did Interruptedly, Of distant sentinels the fitful song. But the sweetness of repose, and the luxury of cooling again, and the clear light of the great stars upon which we gazed tended to blend the most dis cordant sounds into one soothing harmony. Those nights almost recompensed one for the day, and during the glare and toil, how earnestly might we have cried : — Tl6Tvia TT&rvia vv£, inrvoSdreipa tuv iro\vir6va>v fipoTtov 'Epef366ei> XBi. 134 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. We did not have such a long march next day on account of the fatigue of our men. We encamped by the river at 2 p.m. in a pretty spot, almost Thames-like in its aspect. We formed our zareeba on a natural lawn, which reached to the water's edge. The day was not hot compara tively. There was a delicious breeze, and as I took out my sketch-book after lunch, I could have fancied myself at a picnic rather than face to face with the stern realities of war in the heart of Africa, had it not been for the dropping shots which the enemy fired at us from the woods on the opposite bank. They provided us with this entertainment during the whole time we were forming the zareeba and while we were at lunch. But we ate on in peace. They were wretched shots. A few bullets struck the water, but none came near us. It was a fearful waste of ammunition, and they must have captured a good supply of it at Obeid, for this had been going on at intervals all the way up from Duem. The next day passed without incident, and we encamped for the night as before. A NIGHT OF TAM-TAMMING. 135 CHAPTER XIV. A FALSE ALARM AND COOLNESS OF OUR TROOPS. Je m'en vay chercher un grand peut-estre. Babelais. Having received the first intimation from our spies that the enemy were coming, we at first thought of forming our square on the river-bank. Subsequently, upon hearing we were going to be attacked, it was determined to encamp on a rise about 300 yards away. We at first intended to form two squares, but ultimately decided to encamp in a single large zareeba. The tam tammmg of the Bagarra went on all night from the woods opposite, and for the first time we felt the presence of an unseen enemy. It was thought we might be attacked by night. A murky darkness set in about seven, which lasted for the space of an hour and a half, and then, up rose the yellow moon, and right glad was I to see it. The night passed, however, and nothing occurred. As soon as dawn appeared we discerned the 1 36 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. smoke of a steamer. Marcopolo declared it to be General Hicks's boat, although we had supposed he was gone on to Jebel-Ain. The smoke came from behind an island on the Nile. After a few moments of suspense I descried a horseman dashing across the island. He was mounted on a dapple-grey, and without hesitation plunged into the river and came splashing across the shallow water which intervened between us and the island. It was gallant young Massey, the bearer of despatches from the General, which informed me that we should probably be attacked immediately. The despatch further stated that the General was coming to join us at once with the two extra Norden feldts, and directed that the officers' chargers should be sent to the water's edge at the point nearest the steamer. General Hicks, on passing the Ford and nearing Jebel-Ain, had received information through a body of spies organised by Captain Evans, that the rebels, in numbers some 30,000, finding that in case of retreat they would be caught in a trap, as the river was held by the steamers, and Abdel-Kader's army was supposed to be marching from the west, had determined to take the initiative, and were hastening to attack us instead of waiting for us at Jebel-Ain, A HEAVY SENTENCE FOR MUTINY. 137 as they had recently sent word to us in a defiant message. General Hicks and the rest of the staff came on shore an hour afterwards. We greeted our gallant chief right heartily, for the news that we were at last to meet the enemy face to face had worked us up to the highest pitch of enthusiasm. During the evening occurred the only breach of discipline that came under my notice the whole time I was with the Soudan Army. Two Egyptian artillery officers, pro bably intent on laying in a stock of Dutch courage for the coming engagement, indulged in copious libations of vermouth and raki in the tent of the Austrian officer, Lieutenant Mattiaga. When Lieu tenant Morris visited the guns, these two worthies broke out into a torrent of abuse, and were found to be hopelessly drunk and altogether hors de combat. General Hicks handed over the case to Suleiman Pasha, with the result, I believe, that the offenders were told not to do it again ! I mention this case as a striking and solitary exception to the general conduct of the troops. With a steadier or more patient army I never marched. Unlike the present Egyptian army, the officers of which are mutinous and fanatical, and whose hatred of their English officers has on one occasion at least 138 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. found expression in acts of flagrant insubordination, the Soudan Field Force was permeated throughout by a loyalty and a sense of duty beyond all praise. The native officers displayed readiness and cheer fulness in the performance of their duties and the utmost confidence in their Commander and his Staff. Moreover, there was a thorough good understanding on either side, and I do not hesitate to say they were fond of us. The breach of discipline referred to above was mainly brought about by a stray Austrian officer whom General Hicks, for some reason known to himself, employed, much against the approbation of the English officers, on the Staff. And now — The sun's rim dips, the stars rush out, At one stride comes the dark ; how graphically Coleridge describes the rapid twi- lightless tropical nightfall ! That night the members of our little mess met together once more. We were very lively, and, of course, our thoughts and conver sation were concentrated on the approaching battle, the issue of which might be tried at any moment, we knew not how soon. Though not exulting, we were quietly confident ; for we felt that the action would be sharp, short, and decisive. ANXIOUS MOMENTS. 139 Methought that mist of dawning gray Would never dapple into day ; How heavily it roll'd away — Before the eastern flame Bose crimson, and deposed the stars, And call'd the radiance from their cars, And fill'd the earth, from his deep throne, With lonely lustre, all his own. Byron, Mazeppa, xvi. Now came the really anxious hours. Till moon- rise, wrapped as we were in an oppressive darkness in our crowded camp, no one dared close his eyes. Might not the stealthy, daring Bagarra, be on us at any moment ? Even if they could not break through the zareeba, could not a determined foe— as they were known to be— wade into our camp by the shallows near the margin of the Nile ? During this horn- of darkness we sat and smoked our pipes, apparently indifferent to our position, though each one felt a secret apprehension, and then intense relief, as on the previous night, at seeing the soft silvery light of Selene steal slowly over the silent sombre plain. Now, we could snatch a few hours' sleep without the dread of finding the enemy in our midst. At midnight an alarm was raised. ' They are 140 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. coming ! they are coming ! ' was passed from mouth to mouth, but there was no hurry, no confusion. First the outlying picket, and then the sentries, were heard loudly challenging. Orders were given to fall in, and every man was in his place in a moment. This was done steadily, and in a soldier-like manner. We waited at our posts; the challenging still continued, mingled with clamorous voices, evidently outside the zareeba at the blocked-up entrance. Five minutes elapsed, and at last it transpired that all this excitement was caused by Captain Evans, who was returning with his body of spies, and, in spite of his best Arabic, could not get by the sentries. He had not taken the pre caution to furnish himself with the countersign ; and, not liking the idea of staying outside all night, he raised his voice to the highest pitch. This little incident caused us to place more re liance on our men, and General Hicks, next morning, complimented them on their cool behaviour. The information Evans brought us was this: — The enemy intended to attack us next day ; they were to pour down on our front face to the south. So sure was Evans of his information that I suggested— in rather a poaching spirit, I fear— that I should measure the different distances so as to enable the WHO GOES THERE? 141 men to get their range. ' Capital idea ! ' said General Hicks. So I started at nine o'clock, and paced the different distances up to 1,000 yards, placing sticks or heaps of stones at intervals of 100 yards. This took up some time ; I did not get back until eleven, and I had gone out in my tarboosh only, foolishly leaving my helmet behind. To this rashness part of my subsequent illness was traced. My labour was lost, for when they did appear, it was on our left flank. It was the first sight we had of the enemy, and a fantastic sight it was ; reminding one of the old tale of the Phantom Army racing headlong, as it seemed to us, over cliffs and crags, through lakes, and taking flying leaps from the brinks of precipices — for in front of us the mirage was wonderfully vivid. In these wild lands the old mystic stories, the favourites of our boyhood, are half realised. Our formation in square was preserved, whilst some of us were detached to reconnoitre. 142 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER XV. THE LAST OF THE CRUSADERS. What art thou, speak, that on designs unknown, While others sleep, thus range the camp alone ? Some little time before this a chief had joined us, stating that all his men had gone over to the enemy. We employed him as a spy, and he certainly brought us some accurate information, although he was all along suspected of trimming. This day I felt certain of it, as immediately the horsemen were out of our range he rode forth, ostensibly to find out where they had gone, and went two or three miles away from the camp. This showed there was some secret understanding, or he would not thus have risked his life. Nothing could have been easier than for the enemy to have cut him off, above all as he and his horse were clad in armour. It was in the Soudan I first saw to my amaze ment the mail armour of the Middle Ages actually in use. Whether original or a copy, it was undoubt edly the dress of the Crusaders. The hauberk of A SEVENTEEN STONE APPARITION. 143 mail was fastened round the body by the baltan, and formed a complete covering from head to foot. The long two-handed double-edged sword was worn between the leg and the saddle. This appears to me an additional proof that this chain armour actually came from the Saracens, who stripped it from the bodies of slain or captured knights. The wearer of this mediaeval garb was Sheikh Mohammed Sebekh, of the Halawin tribe of Bagarra Arabs. I asked him where he had got his armour. He replied it had been in his family 310 years. I may add the horse's head was encased in steel, and its body covered with a quilt thick enough to turn a spear. It was shaped like the armour one reads of in Froissart. The man rode fully seventeen stone, being over six feet high. The first time I met him was on the occasion of our first night alarm. It was moonlight, though cloudy. Hearing a bugle sound, I rushed out of my tent, and was as much astounded as though I had seen the ghost of my great-grandfather. In front of me was the apparition of a knight clad in full armour, lance in hand and sword on thigh ; I rubbed my eyes and thought I was dream ing. But the sihaiXov vanished not, and in truth, 144 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. proved to be an actual flesh and blood knight of the Soudan, temp. 19th century. How is it we find these ' knights ' clad in Crusa ders' armour here, far in the interior of Africa ? The garb of ancient chivalry lingered in Spain after it had been discarded by the rest of Europe. It vanished with the publication of Cervantes' famous satirical romance, and seems to have crossed the Straits of Gibraltar, but who would ever have thought of going to the White Nile to find a modern representative of the knights of old. I do not pretend to the accuracy of the following explanation. My readers may take it for what it is worth. In a previous chapter it is mentioned, I think, that the Arabs from the north inundated the Soudan and drove the Negroes south, or made slaves of them. When the Saracens were driven out of Palestine by the Crusaders many of them crossed into Egypt. Thence they gradually spread further south as far as Lat. 10° N. Beyond this point they found their camels begin to die off, so they again turned north ward, and took to the more lucrative employment of breeding horses and cattle. More Arabs followed. These settled in the north of Kordofan, and were able to continue breeding camels. Thus, as I have re peatedly urged, our enemies were not Negroes, as ill- DESCENDANTS OF THE SARACENS. 115 informed journals, especially the ' Illustrated London News,' ' continually asserted, but the descendants of the Saracens. The Negroes were driven south into the Dinka country. The original inhabitants of Kordofan were Nu bians. Large numbers of them still linger in Jebel- Nuba, a mountain region some way south of Kordofan. It is from these districts as well as from the Gha- zal country, that the great slave dealers drew their supplies. The conquerors, as in the Southern States and our own West Indian possessions, mixed with the aborigines to a certain extent. The Arabs, born cavaliers, raided on their southern neighbours, much as the chieftains of our own island did over the Scottish border — men as well as cattle were lifted however. Many of the Saracens took up their abode east of the Atbara River and overran Senaar. It is obvious to all who have visited the Soudan, 1 The Egyptian Government, immediately after getting rid of Arabi Pasha, has had to contend with an insurrection of the Mus sulman Negro tribes in the remote southern territories of Darfur, Kordofan, and the Soudan, menacing even the important position of Khartoum, at the junction of the White Nile with the Blue Nile. The insurgents are led by a fanatical Negro chieftain of Darfur, claiming to be the Mahdi or destined Prophet and Guide of Islam, who was expected to appear in November last.' — Vide I. L. N. 146 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. that the slave hunting tribes possess the Semitic type of features of the Saracen, and retain a strongly marked individuality both of physiognomy and character. In the course of centuries there has been a certain admixture of Negro blood, but in spite of this and their long settlement in the country the Arabs of the Soudan have nothing African about them. In features, manners, and customs they are Asiatic. The institu tion of slavery — the real bone of contention — has re ceived since the time of Abraham the peculiar sanction of Semitic nations. Nothing can be more erroneous than to confound the Asiatic conquerors of the Soudan with the abori ginal African races. As well might we place in the same category the white inhabitants of the United States and Canada, with the red-skin aborigines of those countries. No one could mistake a Baggara Arab of the Bahr- Ghazal for a Dinka, or Shillook, belonging to the same region. To call Mohammed Ahmed, and his lieutenants negro chieftains, as the ' Illustrated London News ' and other journals did, is as absurd as it would be to describe General Jackson as a chief of the Sioux or Chippeway Indians. OUR CHIVALROUS FOE. 147 After the battle of Marabia I made a careful scrutiny of the features of the nine chiefs we slew, and of those of many of their followers. They were of a light brown hue with well-chiselled noses and lips. There were certainly many among the slain of a darker hue, approaching that of the Negro, and a coarser cast of countenance. These men, I knew, held a position resembling that of the serfs in the feudal system of Europe. Many of the Arabs are strikingly handsome men. Most of them have well-cut features, perfectly distinct from the Negro type. Not only in features did we find a point of re semblance, for in actual combat they displayed the qualities and tactics of their warlike ancestors. They never wait to be attacked. Their onslaught is furious. They sweep down on their foe in one sudden rush, and their plan of battle is invariably to throw their enemy into confusion by the rapidity of their attack, which always takes place in the open. We had to traverse dense woods and jungles on our march. The chances in their favour would have been immense had they attacked us while we were making our way through these obstacles, but their instincts and traditions taught them that such a mode of warfare would not be chivalrous. 148 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. It must be borne in mind that the rifle-pits and ambuscades resorted to by the tribes of the Nubian desert in the recent Eastern Soudan campaign were planned by Egyptian renegades, and were not the work of the natives of the country. THE PENNY STEAMBOAT. 149 CHAPTER XVI. THE BATTLE OF MARABIA. Is it the wind those branches stirs ? No, no ! from out the forest prance A trampling troop ; I see them come ! In one vast squadron they advance 1 Byron, Mazeppa, xvn. General Hicks resolved on the morning of the 29th to return to what we jocularly called his ' penny steamer ' to reconnoitre. He determined to do this, as he, in common with the rest of us, began to dis believe the reports of the spies who asserted we might be attacked hourly. This is not the place to discuss whether a com mander should at such a time lead a reconnoitring party or stay with the main force. Let it suffice to say that General Hicks thought the interests of the expedition were better served by leaving me to act for him with Colonel de Coetlogon as Quartermaster- General. We had received so many reports which did not 1 50 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. bear fruition in fact, and had experienced not a few false alarms, so that it was scarcely to be wondered at that we had but small faith in the pretended inten tion of the enemy to attack forthwith. The boat was got under steam and the General proceeded to embark, taking with him as usual Colonel Farquhar, Adjutant- General, Captain Massey, Aide- de-Camp, and Dr. Rosenberg, together with 150 Bashi-Bazouks and two of the Nordenfeldts. His butler, Brady, formerly a sergeant in the Royal Artillery, accompanied the party. At the last moment intelligence reached us which led him to delay his departure until the morrow. I forgot to say that the previous morning he had called me up and said : — ' We are certain to be attacked to day. Instruct the men that the affair will only last ten minutes. The enemy will come upon us with a yell, but tell them all they have to do is to fire low and remember we are there. If the worst comes to the worst, you and the other English officers must rally round me.' I reprint two letters from the ' Daily News ' giving an account of the battle. The first was written in great haste, as a steamer was going off with despatches, and I had only three-quarters of an hour in which to write it and do two sketches for the 'Graphic' The THEY COME, THEY COME: 151 second letter, containing fuller details, was written shortly afterwards. First Letter. ' General Hicks joined our camp on the 25th inst., about eighteen miles south of the fort at Kawa, on hearing that the enemy were advancing in large numbers against us. He had gone up the Nile with a force towards Yebel-Ain, and had destroyed a number of rafts built by the enemy for the purpose of crossing over to Kordofan. On his arrival, informa tion having been received that the enemy were close at hand and determined to attack us at once, it was considered as well to wait for them ; so we did not march on the 26th. Onward sweeps the rolling host. Byron, The Deformed Transformed, Part 11. Sc. 1. ' True enough, about eleven on the morning of that day, a large body of horsemen were seen approach ing from the south-east, about two thousand yards distant. There was a mirage at the time on the horizon; and the effect of these swarthy cavaliers galloping, as it were, through it, gave them the appearance of a phantom army. Every soldier was in his place in a moment, awaitmg steadily, but anxiously, the coming of the foe ; for it was ini- 152 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. possible to know what number of men might swoop down on us from the waving ground. They approached to 1,000 yards, when rockets and shells were at once discharged at them. The soldiers — who had formed in a solid square — threw out ' crows' feet,' or little iron spikes, joined in three — a device calculated to make the ground inconvenient for stepping on, to sandal-shod savages or horses without shoes. The horsemen now raced off, and were no more seen for the time ; but they hung about us during the day, though no attack was made. ' On the 27th, tents were struck at dawn, and the army continued its march south, leaving woods and the river on the right flank. We had been again told, on apparently most trustworthy authority, that the enemy were waiting for us four miles from our halting-place in these woods, and would certainly be on us very shortly and endeavour to intercept our further progress. 'But they made no sign, though we gave them every chance of attack. After about a twelve miles' march we halted for the night. ' On the 29th, tents were struck, as usual, at day break, and the order given to march at seven. The great difficulty of General Hicks's movements is the total absence of cavalry, and, as I told you in my A MANLY FOE. 153 telegram, all reconnoitring has to be done by the officers of his Staff. The danger of this insufficient means of scouting was shown now. Colonel Farquhar, who has all along been indefatigable in this duty* accompanied by Captain Massey and four Bashi- Bazouks, had not been far, when they raced in to report the enemy's advance. So rapid was this, that in fifteen minutes they were on us in a cloud. It was nine, and we had marched some five miles. About one thousand yards to our front and right was a wood, out of which spearmen were seen pouring in their thousands, led by their chiefs carrying gaily- coloured banners. Banners rise into the air, With orient colours waving ; with them rose A forest huge of spears, and thronging helms Appeared, and serried shields in thick array Of depth immeasurable. — Milton, i. We had formed a vast square and halted. A tremendous fusillade was opened from our front face, apparently without effect, for they still came on gallantly ; but at five hundred yards they began to fall fast. Still, the chiefs led on their men with all the reckless and romantic chivalry of the old Saracen knights. One by one they fell dismounted, two or three to rise again and dash forward on foot, 154 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. waving their standards, only to drop and rise no more. ' The rebels were commanded by Amer Makushigi, who, with another leader, the Cheik El Arakee, had been only recently sent from Kordofan by Mahomet Achmet, the so-called Mahdi. Calmly, and apparently without the slightest fear, did these Arab cavaliers ride about from right to left, as if seeking to pick out a weak point at which to charge and break into our compact body. Fire and smoke and hellish clangour. ' Their devotedness was in vain. One after another they bit the ground, the first-named chieftain being rolled over by the Nordenfeldt at our left corner. After half an hour's continued rattle of musketry, seeing their chiefs fallen, and the banners in the dust, the advancing hordes waver, and are greeted with a tremendous howl from our troops, who had stood firmly and unflinchingly, and, I may say, as steadily as any troops could. Now the enemy move off to their right, among the long grass, and our front is cleared. Shells are bursting among them. All are soon out of sight, except a few who walk about unconcernedly, and actually come up singly, after the rest have retreated, to within a VICTORY! 155 few yards, brandishing their spears in defiance. One after another these poor fanatics are knocked over. When the smoke had rolled away, it was seen that the ground was strewn with corpses, most of them within four hundred yards. 'A strange episode occurred then. Within six yards two men were lying with one of the standards before spoken of. An Egyptian captain was sent out by his colonel to secure it. No sooner had he taken hold of it than up rose the standard-bearer, who was only wounded in the leg, and dashed a spear into his left hand, while the other, not wounded at all, also attacked him. The officer cut over the first with a blow on his neck, and the other was shot, but not before a desperate struggle had taken place. And now, when victory was secured, it was a curious sight to see the Bashi-Bazouks, who, on camels, had been acting as scouts, show their joy by brandishing their rifles over their heads, while their band of music struck up a wild triumphal air, accompanied by ' tam- tamming.' Three cheers were now given for the Khedive, then for Hicks Pasha, and then for Suleiman Pasha, the General who commanded under the in structions of General Hicks, who is, of course, in supreme authority. The joy and enthusiasm of the troops at their first victory were intense. Their officers 156 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. came up and warmly shook hands with the English officers. I must now close this most hastily-written letter, only a quarter of an hour being allowed to me to scrawl it off, so allowance, I trust, will be made. We march onward to follow up the retreating army,. who will probably go and join another body at Jebel- Ain. I forgot to mention that the number of the enemy was 4,000 to 5,000, and that of the killed about 500. Numbers went away wounded or were carried off. We came across these as we went along. Our loss was two killed and a few wounded. You shall hear again as soon as possible. This is taken by the steamer going to Khartoum with despatches. The English officers who were with the troops that marched by land from Kawa were, Colonel Hon. J. Colborne and Colonel de Coetlogon. The officers who came with General Hicks were Colonel Farquhar, Q.M.G., Captain Massey, Captain Evans, and Dr. Rosenberg. ' Several friendly chiefs, whose tribes have been plundered, and who have had several of their men killed, have come in from day to day.' Second Letter. ' Leaving the Fort of Kawa on April 23, our first day's march was rather long as an initiatory opening GRIM- VISA GED WAR. 157 to a campaign. The heat was excessive, and even the sun-born fellah soldier, who works stripped under the burning rays of the Delta, lagged wearily behind, and, in many instances, gave in altogether. During the afternoon I saw more than one instance of sun-stroke among the officers, but they invariably recovered after a short rest under the shade of a tree and a copious drenching of tepid Nile water. The next day the march was a short one due south, following the course of the river, and the following morning we were joined by General Hicks Pasha, who had gone in advance by steamer to reconnoitre the banks of the river, which we never left far distant on our right, and to pick up from the friendly Shillooks what information he could of the movements of the enemy. He now came with the news that a considerable body of the rebels had left their position at Jebel-Ain, and were advancing to meet us. I should mention that the country through which we had hitherto marched was arid, scorched, and cracked into deep seams, although so near the Nile. ' Sakiehs,' or irrigating wheels, had long ceased to work; the villages were charred and blackened ruins. General Hicks Pasha, as chief of the Staff, really Commander-in-Chief of the Soudan Field Force, now landed with the rest of his English officers. Three days we remained in camp, protected by a 158 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. slight trench and ' zareeba,' or abattis, of thorn branches. On the second afternoon there was a call to arms ; the assembly sounded ; the enemy were seen advancing through a wooded stretch, 1,000 yards distant. This first alarm did much to reassure the British officers. The square was rapidly and silently formed, and over 4,000 rifles in readiness, while at each corner at intervals of the line were placed the Nordenfeldts, the rifled howitzers, and the rocket- tubes. As the enemy disclosed himself in circling' groups on the edge of a wooded belt, the rockets and howitzers opened fire ; and whether our practice was good or indifferent, it had the effect of quickly dispers ing the troops of horsemen, which, in all probability, were unsupported, and merely consisted of a strong reconnoitring party. ' On the 28th April we broke camp, hearing that the enemy were waiting for us in a wood, on the skirt of which we should have to paBs, unless we ignored the necessity of clinging to the Nile and keeping the force supplied with water. Well, as we approach this spot of evil repute, the guet-apens where we were all to be massacred, the square was kept in close forma tion, with camels and baggage in the centre, and mounted Bashi-Bazouks were kept well in advance to feel the way. But no enemy showed himself through- THE STEADINESS OF OUR TROOPS. 159 out the march, and in the afternoon we encamped on the river banks close to the still burning and fortified village of Marabia. But the morrow was to be our great day, though when we broke camp at sunrise on the morning of the 29th, few believed we should meet the enemy, who were supposed to be retiring precipitately to their rendezvous at Jebel- Ain. It was there we expected to meet them in formidably entrenched strongholds. ' About an hour from Marabia, Colonel Farquhar and Captain Massey, who had been reconnoitring some distance in front, rode rapidly in and reported the enemy to be advancing. They were quickly followed by the Bashi-Bazouks, scouts, and mounted dromedary men. General Hicks and his English Staff soon had the square solidly formed and pre pared. As usual, all baggage, camels, and camp followers were in the centre. The position we occupied could not have been better had it been purposely chosen — an open plain with no wooded cover nearer than 800 yards. ' The prompt formation of the men was satisfactory in the extreme, and all were apparently ready for the fight. There is no question as to the good moral effect produced by the presence of a handful of British officers. The white helmet made itself con- 160 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. spicuous, and the fellah soldier glanced now and again over his shoulder to this reassuring rallying point. There they are in the openings of the woods, 800 yards in front ; there they are, a confused crowd of horsemen and footmen, breaking, with no effort of organisation, from their cover. Zuish ! fly a couple of rockets, followed by the sharp bang of a section of howitzers. Eagerly we watched the effect, but the rockets burst upon our own men, and though the shells had been nicely timed, they seemed to make but little impres sion. Breaking from cover, the enemy sweeps with an inward curve right and left, his extreme flanks converging towards the opposing angles of our square. Now file-firing commences from the front directly assailed, the men having been cautioned to aim low. Nearer they swept, horse and foot closing on either flank, but as they came within our zone of fire, they butted forward, hit to death. The Nordenfeldts have now got to work, and within a few minutes the lead ing mob, for it was but that, fell in piles. But fanaticism knows no check. The chosen chiefs of the Mahdi were there, followed by their own chosen henchmen. They staggered to the front, to break into a furious gallop straight for our death-dealing square, while in their rear swiftly sped the faithful spearmen. FANATICISM OF THE ARABS. ' Onward they eame, waving their banners inscribed with the Mahdi's own rendering of the Koran ; but the Khedive's troops, encouraged by their English officers, had no fear. They had seen the charm^ - protected enemy bite the dust under their fire. Allah and the true prophet were with them, and they hurled defiance in answer to the fanatical apos trophising of the rebellious sheikhs. ' And what gallant men were they ! Right up to the cannon's mouth, right up to the rifle muzzle, dauntless they rode, encouraging their followers with the promise of paradise, to break our square. But Nordenfeldts and Remingtons are no respecters of creeds or fanatical idiosyncrasies. Sheikh after shiekh went down with his banner, although the Mahdi had assured each he was invulnerable, and their faithful but misguided followers fell in circles around the chiefs they blindly followed. Twelve of the most prominent leaders — nine from Senaar and three from Kordofan — have left their bones to whiten on the battlefield, amidst 300 of their followers. These were the men whom the Mahdi had declared proof against the Turkish bullets. Those who have escaped, especially the wounded, have now leisure to think the matter over ; and I fancy, as I continue the incidents of the battle and after-march to M J 62 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. Jebel-Ain, I shall be able to show that the results of the Khedivial victory have been immense. ' Nearly all the chiefs killed were dervishes. Colonel Farquhar states in a letter he wrote to ' The Egyptian Gazette,' that on this day between 500 and 600 were killed and a great number wounded. The rebels were greatly disheartened, not so much on account of the numbers slain as at the loss of their seven principal chiefs and nearly all the dervishes. ' I counted,' he says, ' forty of the latter within a very short distance of the front face of the square, and many more were doubtless killed. ' Amer-el-Makashfi, the brother of Achmet, the vizier of the Mahdi, was amongst the slain, and as he had come with a special message and blessing from the False Prophet, his death no doubt had a great effect. ' The Arabs are beginning to reason, and say that as Mohammed Achmet's cause brings nothing but death and disaster upon them, they see no great advantage in following him ; and many now openly denounce him as a humbug, particularly as he him self keeps carefully out of the way, and contents himself with sending his blessing and a few old cotton flags, inscribed with verses of the Koran.'1 1 The Egyptian Gazette, June 18 1883. A MAHOMEDAN MARTYR. 163 CHAPTER XVII. AFTER THE FIGHT. Hail horrors, hail Infernal world. After the enemy had cleared away from our front, dismayed at seeing all then: chiefs slain, we ceased firing, waiting to see whether they would sweep round and attack the flanks near which were reeds and brushwood. Two or three little mcidents worthy of note occurred. Here is one — A tall gaunt Bagarra Arab stalked out of the woods chanting the formula used at Moslem funerals : — La ilaha illah-lah : Mohammadur rasool ullah : Sallalla-hu 'alayhi wassellem. (There is no God but God : Mohammed is the Prophet of God, God bless and save him). As he came unpleasantly near, General Hicks, through an interpreter, ordered him to throw down his spear, as the impression was he was going to sur render. He answered with a defiant brandish of his M 2 1 64 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. spear. His intentions were now clear, to die slaying an enemv. He was shot. Another incident. At our left corner a gallant young chief lay wounded. I had observed him, after his horse was shot, make an effort to rush into our square through a gap made by a Nordenfeldt that the gunners, not liking their position outside the square, attempted to drag inside. Hicks always placed his guns outside the square, thinking, I suppose, that gaps made by guns were unsafe. The gunners on this occasion thought it was not good enough. But to return. The young man's head lay on the lap of a dusky damsel. This poor creature with true womanly devotion must have ex posed herself to a feu d'enfer. She sat apparently unconscious of our presence with a jar of water from which she sprinkled the young chief's temples. Oh ! woman, in our hours of ease, Uncertain, coy and hard to please, When pain and anguish wring the brow, A ministering angel thou ! She was taken care of and ultimately sent to Khartoum with her lover — let us suppose he was for the sake of romance — as a prisoner. As we stood to our arms awaiting a second attack, we saw at intervals dusky figures striding leisurely 10 TRIUMPHE! 165 among the dead and carefully examining their faces, in search of kith and kin. They looked neither to the right nor left, and utterly ignored our presence. The poor fellows were shot — martyrs to their devotion. Seeing there was no attempt on the part of the enemy to return to the attack, the English officers rode outside the square and reconnoitred. Among the long grass were lying many desperately wounded men. The ground was strewn with spears, and we found many rifles in the course of our round, but eould discover no trace of the enemy, and after satisfy ing ourselves that the Arabs had retreated from the neighbourhood, we returned to the square. The exuberant joy of our little Soudanese was ex cessive, and in its demonstration they displayed all the childish glee of semi-savage natures. Perched on the backs of camels or astride their ponies, they tossed their lances spinning into the air, waved their arms, and chanted, with a wild abandon, a sort of Soudanese ' Io Triumphe ! ' This was accompanied by furious volleys of tam-tamming and ear-splitting blasts from the horns of buffaloes and hollowed tusks. The scene — a mixture as it was of infantine delight and demoniacal savagery — was thoroughly African, and characteristic of a rudimentary form of social 166 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. existence. No regret for the loss of life, no com punction for the shedding of blood, no ethical abstractions, marred the pure pleasure which the sense of victory conveyed to these simple warriors. After the men had rested sufficiently, the bugles rang out the advance, and we marched. The English officers rode outside the square. From the summit of a hill about half a mile from the site of the engagement, we perceived a line of black objects, quite motionless. They puzzled us at first, but, on advancing, we came to a dead horse, or rather the skeleton of one, for there was not much flesh left. The black objects were vultures, intent on their disgusting repast. They did not move away, but eyed us sulkily, as though we were impertinent intruders. They hopped stiffly for two or three yards, but did not attempt to fly away — perhaps they could not do so, so gorged were they. We set our faces southwards, and left the hyaenas and vultures the undisputed masters cf the field. Our advance was now directed on Jebel-Ain, and the whole force marched during the day in square, as before. We now made for our halting-place, but to get to it, we had to pass through a jungle, the densest we had hitherto come across. Truly picturesque was. POOR YORICKJ 167 our encampment. The discomfiture of our enemy did not cause us to relax our vigilance. Our tents were pitched, and the soldiers set to work cutting bushes for the zareeba. General Hicks sent for us to his marquee, where we had a conversation with the commander, and afterwards I returned to my tent. I may mention that the sun strikes through these tents with much greater power than through the double tents used by the Indian army. I have frequently registered 119° inside. It was never less during the day than 110°. Most gladly did I kick off my huge miliary riding boots and heavy cords, and exchange them for pyjamas and the red boot-like slippers I used to sleep in as a precaution against snakes. Regardless of the wants of to-morrow, I broached my two last bottles of Dreher's Austrian beer — not unselfishly— for did I not call in to share the amber nectar with me an elderly gentleman of portly but soldier-like presence ? And who was he ? None other than Frank Vizetelly, the celebrated artist of the ' Illustrated London News.' ' Alas, poor Yorick ! I knew him, Horatio ; a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy ! ' He was a brave old man — always cheerful and amusing, though utterly without resources, except 1 68 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. those with which we provided him. He was always expecting remittances from his journal. This became a standing joke among us, for they never seemed to arrive. He marched on foot every step of the way from Suakin — a feat whieh certainly no European ever accomplished before. I forget; one day, on our march from Kawa, I mounted him on a spare horse. It happened to be a restive one, and cannoned against a camel. The poor special artist was kicked off and deposited on the sand. We could never get him to mount a horse after this. He was an excellent raconteur, and had the widest and most varied circle of acquaintances of any man I ever met. He had been on terms of more or less intimacy with Napoleon III., Mr. Barnum, Garibaldi, Calcraft, Victor Emanuel, Mr. O'Donovan, the late cor respondent of the ' Daily News,' Sir Garnet Wolseley, Edgar Poe, Don Carlos, Mr. Toole, General Stonewall Jackson, the Bey of Tunis, Madame Rachel, Marshal MacMahon, Louise Michel, George Augustus Sala, Mr. Ingram of the I.L.N, and the famous head waiter at ' The Cheshire Cheese,' among hosts of others, of whom he was never tired of telling anecdotes. He had for many years devoted his really brilliant talents to the service of the ' Illustrated London News,' apparently without any great pecuniary advantage to A WALK THROUGH AFRICA. 169 himself. He used to say inter pocula that after the Kordofan campaign he intended to continue his walk throughout the length of Africa until he emerged on the Southern Ocean, sketching for his paper en route. By this desperate adventure he hoped at last to ob tain some recognition of the services of nearly a life time, and earn a competency for the declining years of his life. Such was poor Vizetelly. His project was never realized, nor had he need of a compe tency. His name was telegraphed I know not by what quid pro quo as being the sole survivor of the Expeditionary Army. An absurd story gained some credence, to the effect that he had been able to make good his escape through his position on an elevated rock, which he had chosen as a point de vue from which to sketch the battle for the ' Illustrated London News.' Time has passed since then, and with it naught but the dumbness of death — not a sign has been given by any member of the ill-fated expedition. Baseless rumours have one after another been refuted by the logic of silence, and in all human probability the time and manner of the deaths of my gallant comrades will never be precisely known. 170 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER XVIII. ON THE MARCH AGAIN. Our bugles rang truce, for the night-cloud had lowered, And the sentinel stars set their watch in the sky, And thousands had sunk on the ground overpowered, The weary to sleep, the wounded to die. — Campbell. As it grew dark, the ruddy glow of the camp fires cast a lurid light over the stems and masses of foliage around us. Fantastic shadows flitted among the creepers hanging in festoons among the great syca mores and Adansonias, whose branches stretched forth like giants' arms from the gloomy recesses of the forest. Ere this Massey and Warner had returned from a reconnoitring excursion with a few followers, to en deavour to see how far the enemy had fled. They had a brisk hunt after half a dozen. These they tried to capture without killing. Now they would turn to bay on their pursuers, and then run on and dodge about. It was found impossible to capture them, and as they began to throw their spears, wound- FLYING SHOTS. 171 ing one man in the cheek, pistols were now used, but without effect. ' I never knew how difficult it was before,' said Massey to me, 'to hit a moving object from a horse which is also moving.' Right glad were we when the glowing sun began to sink below the horizon in a blaze ' of living light.' The evenings were perfectly delicious by contrast and the nights were glorious, the brilliancy of the stars surpassing anything I ever saw in any part of the world. Our cornet-a-piston bands sent forth strains trans posed from Soudanese airs unique of their kind by way of sounding tattoo, and the fires among the trees which gave such a weird look to our huge camp gradually died out, the men lying down under arms along the sides of the square. The previous year the Khedive's troops were so often surprised and slaughtered to a man, that the utmost vigilance was always employed in our expedition. When false alarms occurred the men were always at their posts in a moment. British officers visited the outlying pickets and sentries. This was appreciated by the soldiers, who said that their officers did not pay sufficient attention to the posts. At five next morning the cornets sounded 'Load camels,' and we hastily swallowed our nasty mess of 172 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. coffee, made with the foul water of the river. Then, on the word to march being passed, we were in a state of great confusion, working our way out of the few and narrow outlets of the zareeba — soldiers, mounted officers, camels, mules, guns, together. These were the moments when the enemy should have pounced upon us. We soon got our square into shape how ever, and forward was the word. Beautiful plains lay in our front, and woods to the right and left. The incorrigible Bashi-Bazouks, who were scouring these, could not resist the temptation of taking shots at the herds of antelopes, and several times the whole army was caused to halt by these false alarms. The English officers rode in front with the mounted camel-men and Soudanese on ponies— active little fellows — both men and beasts. It was contrary to orders to fire at game, but, with slung rifle, one found it truly difficult to resist a shot at the beautiful little creatures canter ing by in all directions, sometimes at a distance of only twenty yards. Some said they saw a herd of giraffes with their long necks stretching above the bush. Now we came to a huge mound of new-made graves encircled by stones, and surmounted by two white flags, a mute and pathetic appeal to us to respect their dead. We came across many of these. The A DESERTED WOMAN. 173 corpses were evidently hastily buried. Blood-stained hands and legs protruded in ghastly fashion from the fresh soil. Some suspicious-looking pits, with straw placed over their mouths, next attracted our attention. What could they be? We uncovered them, not without caution, and found nothing more terrible than piles of ' dhurra ' stored away. Our Bashi-Bazouks and mounted Soudanese were not long in helping them selves, and when the main body reached us, the men, Egyptian like, actually broke out of their ranks to fill their bags. General Hicks's indignation at this want of discipline was unbounded, and he promptly made them fall in and march on, leaving the ' dhurra ' behind. We found a poor woman who was left behind by the retreating enemy. She told us that the camels were so loaded with wounded that they had to do so. It is seldom the Bagarra desert their women, but I suppose their haste to reach the ford was so great that they cared for nothing but this, their one object. We came across many wounded, too. Sometimes the whole army would pass and leave a poor fellow unscathed; but usually some ruthless hand would give him his quietus, perhaps after all in mercy, as in most cases the wounds were desperate. 174 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. Our withering fire knocked the poor fellows over and over, only to rise again and hurl their spears at us. The Nordenfeldts, too, made frightful havoc. But the vitality of these ' children of the sun ' is marvellous. Now, another march under the burning sun is completed, and we halt and encamp on the bank of the Nile. Again I must pay a tribute to the alacrity and cheerfulness with which our men set to work with axes to cut wood for their zareeba. My experience of ' Tommy Atkins ' teaches me that he would grumble at it, and prefer his dinner first, with a chance of being made mince-meat of in a sudden rush. I never heard an Egyptian soldier avail himself of the Englishman's privilege — he never grumbles. The place we halted at was called Abow-Goumeh. CAPTAIN MASSEY. 175 CHAPTER XIX. THE MAGNIFICENT ENDURANCE OF A YOUNG ENGLISH OFFICER. To-morrow would have given him power To rule, to shine, to smite, to save — And must it dawn upon his grave ? — Byron, Mazeppa. We continued our march on May 1. On this day occurred on of the most painful and startling incidents of the march. We were nearly losing the services of a gallant and promising young officer. Alas! his fate was but retarded. A few months later he fell with his General at the post of duty at Kashgate. Captain Massey, cousin of General Lord Clarina, commanding the Dublin district, had been left behind by General Hicks to conduct the reconnoitring, which he was supposed to do with the help of five Soudanese irregulars. On the morning in question they shirked duty, dropping behind one by one, and complaining that their ponies were dead beat. They had been pretty well worked, it is true. Captain Massey, rather rashly, perhaps, though the fault was on the 176 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. right side, determined to go on alone, taking with him an Egyptian Staff Officer, Lieutenant Ali. After proceeding some distance, they came to a large rock, up which they climbed. From the summit they discerned the merkebs sailing bravely up the Nile to the west, and to the north, the army marching southwards. The country to the west and south of this eminence was covered with thick bush. From this point they pushed eastwards into the Senaar country. For an hour they cleared a way through the bush, passing over two hills. Dismounting to rest, Captain Massey felt an oppressing thirst. ' We are close to the Nile,' he said ; ' give me some water.' Remounting, and thinking to strike the river, they cantered southwards for half an hour across open ground, and again entered the bush. Perceiving smoke in a south-westerly direction, they made their way towards it, supposing it to be the smoke of General Hicks's steamer. To their disgust, it ap peared about a mile off, and then shifted its direction as inconstant as a will-o'-the-wisp. Alas ! it was as unsubstantial in its nature — being nothing more than one of the sand-spouts, so frequent in these regions, smoky- coloured whirlwinds. Their endeavours to view the Nile proved abortive, and they directed all their efforts to get clear of the labyrinth of scrub in WHY SHOULD WE BOTH DIE? 177 which they were entangled, going east in order to do this. Captain Massey's thirst now became intolerable. It was noon, under the withering rays of a tropical sun. Feeling very faint, and the water being almost finished, he determined to rest awhile. They both dismounted. The Egyptian officer now assisted Captain Massey to remount. They could see a hill to the east, and pushed on towards it, hoping to get bearings from its summit. The hope was vain. They reached it, ascended it, clambered up a tree even, growing on its summit, but could see no landmark to indicate their position. After more wandering they gathered up all their strength for a march due west, which would inevitably bring them to some point on the bank of the Nile — now their only hope of salvation. Guided by the sun, and resting occa- 'sionally, they toiled on. At length they reached a deserted village. Horses and men were now thoroughly exhausted from want of water, though luckily the Egyptian officer's horse had been changed that morning, and was comparatively fresh. For the second time, Captain Massey gave his companion positive orders to leave. 'Why should we both die?' said he. He now wrote a brief memorandum, in which he took farewell of his friends, requesting certain articles to be sent to his N 178 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. relatives, and recommending Lieutenant Ali Effendi to General Hicks for his fidelity. The young Egyptian, after the Oriental fashion, kissed him, shedding tears. Captain Massey then fell into a profound sleep — or rather, into a state of torpor. The faithful officer, unwilling to leave, stayed half an hour, till he believed death had taken place. He stated in camp on his return, that he felt the heart no longer beat, and no breath condensed on the watch-case. About 7 p.m. the young officer awoke from his death-like swoon. He was alone in the wilderness. The first thing that met his eye was a huge fire in the distance. ' There is bur camp,' he thought ; so, making a desperate effort, he gathered together the little strength remaining in him, and clambered on his horse. The animal at first slowly trotted, then walked, and at last came to a standstill. The captain dismounted, and led him, or rather, dragged him, a few paces ; but the poor beast fell to rise no more; hunger, thirst, and fatigue, had done their work. Leaving his scabbard and revolver, on which the horse had fallen, and with his naked sword in hand, the poor fellow then staggered on with faltering step, stumbling and falling over bush and stump. Luckily, I SAW THE EXPECTING RAVEN FLY. 179 he was too weak to reach the fire. It was lit — as was afterwards proved — by a stray band of the enemy. The sun was sinking— still I lay And my dim eyes of death had need, No hope arose of being freed : I cast my last looks up the sky, And there between me and the sun I saw the expecting raven fly, Who scarce would wait till both should die, Ere his repast begun. Byron, Mazeppa. The moon rose, and he again lapsed into uncon sciousness. This lasted until sunrise, when he was aroused from his comatose condition by the rays. He made another effort in the direction of the fire, but the sun soon became overpowering. Seeing some chance of shade under a tree, he lay down there, covering his head with his silk koofiyeh,1 while his body and legs were being literally scorched. Here he lay stretched the livelong tropic day. It may be well here to give his actual sensations whilst undergoing agonies of thirst such as few have experienced and lived to tell the tale. The tongue, swollen to an immense size, became as hard as iron. 1 The silk kerchief worn over the head in picturesque folds so familiar in artists' delineations of Arabs. N 2 180 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. A crass, gluey substance filled his throat, which, from time to time, he endeavoured to pull out with his hand, as the muscles had no power to eject this mucus. The throat being thus choked, breathing became painfully difficult. The sun was again sinking when Captain Massey made a last and final effort to reach the fire. He rose, but fell before he had taken two steps. He was closing his eyes, in, as he believed, his last sleep, when the sound of horses' hoofs caught his ear, and the next moment he saw a party of mounted Arabs approaching. 'It matters little,' he said to himself; ' I shall be all the sooner out of misery.' Luckily, his revolver was under his dead horse, or he would have fired his last shot in desperation, and inevitably have brought upon himself a shower of lances. At first the Arabs did not perceive him, but their wily ponies gave a snort of warning, and the band surrounded him with the rapidity of lightning — as he thought, to despatch him. Even at this moment Nature asserted herself, and forgetting everything in the exquisite agony of thirst, he crawled towards them, calling, as well as he could, ' Moyah ! Moyah ! ' (' Water, water '). ' Taeeb ! Taeeb .' ' (< Good, good '), they replied, reversing their spears. RESCUED BY FRIENDLY ARABS. 181 They were friendly Arabs, who had been sent from the camp to search for his body, and bring it back for Christian burial if not too far decomposed. Their reward was to be 201. They gave him a large skin of water. Wildly he plunged his face into it. They rubbed him and tended him with the greatest care ; and after resting for some hours, brought him into camp at seven in the morning, to the astonishment of all. It was gratifying to see with what joy the soldiers, poor fellows, saw again their lost young English officer. Many Egyptian officers crowded the tent in which he lay, to suffocation, in order to shake hands, until we had to forbid it. This excitement was but the true and honest expression of their joy at the return of an officer for whom the graA'e had been actually dug — for none of us ever expected to see him come back alive. It was really marvellous to see how quickly he recovered after such fearful deprivations. Had he been possessed of less stamina and less vitality he must have succumbed. Most men would have done so. Pluck and endurance pulled him through. In a temperate climate the want of water for two days might be borne; but it must be remembered that 1 82 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. under a tropical sun, and in a dry, sand-charged atmosphere the case is entirely different : to wit, the camels, who go much longer without water in winter than in summer. One seldom hears of one dying in the winter. THE ISLAND OF ABBA. 183 CHAPTER XX. THE DESERTED DOCKYARDS OF THE SOUDAN. Groves whose rich trees wept odorous gums and balm. Milton, rv. 247. On the day of Captain Massey's disappearance I had gone on a long way ahead, thinking the army would encamp much higher up. On reaching the Nile I found myself abreast of an island. After watering my thirsty steed, I waded across to it. Here were thousands of geese, and I fondly hoped to find eggs among the long reeds and bulrushes, but my hopes were vain. There were many cranes and herons, too, and the pretty little ' paddy-bird ' was in great force. The seene was enchanting, and a fresh breeze had sprung up which made it more enjoyable. The river was dotted by the lateen sails of the ' merkebs,' which anchored as they came up. We were now on the twelfth parallel, and the scenery began to smack of equatorial Afriea. 1 84 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. The Island of Abba produces the finest timber in the Soudan, and the lofty mimosas were alive with black eagles and ehattering grey monkeys. While looking for an encamping place, I rode along the bank, occasionally letting my horse feed on the grass. I picked up an eau-de-cologne bottle here. Where it had come from,, I was, and still am, at a loss to know. Bits of ambatch rafts came floating down the stream, the debris of Hicks's naval engage ment. I passed several yellow straw-built huts, all facing me. They were nearly exact counterparts of rustie arbours in English gardens. I could not help feehng pained at seeing these neat little dwellings deserted. The sable Paterfamilias was no longer there quaffing his merissa, and inhaling the aromatic fumes from his water-pipe, nor were ' his young barbarians, all at play.1 Each abandoned hut was shaded by a spreading sycamore. This was formerly a little Shillook settle ment and rejoiced in the name of Gafl Haroos (the Nymph's Hand). Before the war, this spot was the navy-yard of the Soudan, and dozens of boats were built on it every year for service on the White Nile. The material used is the suntwood (acacia nilotica), apparently the only wood found in the Soudan which is suitable for the purpose. It is heavier and harder NILE BOATS. 185 than oak, and very knotted and irregular. It is thus impossible to get it in great lengths. The enormous yards of the Nile boats are made by splicing a number of lengths together, and are bound with ox-hide. The stubborn nature of the material makes the building of boats very costly, but the amount of wear and tear they stand is prodigious. Clumsy in construction, but not ungraceful in contour, the Nile boat, with its stout, short mast supporting the single Brobdingnagian yard, much longer than the vessel itself, is a unique specimen of naval architecture. I was now informed by the mounted irregulars that the army was encamped two miles further down, and, on reaching camp, I learned the painful news of Captain Massey's supposed death. I volunteered to go in search of him, but Hussein Pasha made strong objections, on the ground that the army would be delayed, and peremptory orders had been received from Hicks to march next morning ; so it was decided to despatch a party of Shillooks to find his body, as it was positively asserted that he would never be brought in alive. The happy issue of the quest of the Shillook scouts above related, refuted this. On the evening of May 3, General Hicks, who had been watching for an opportunity to intercept the 186 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. precipitate retreat of the enemy, returned from re connoitring. He came across some hundreds of rebels crossing the river at Jebel-Ain on ambatch rafts, constructed to carry about ten men each. The machine guns and rifles opened fire, and many of the enemy were killed. The rest returned to shore. A quantity of cattle were killed also, and brought away for our troops — a real boon to men who had been marching and fighting on ' dhurra.' After a brief visit, leaving us our instructions, the General was off again to continue his river patrolling, and further to establish amicable relations with rebel chiefs willing to tender their submission to the Government. JEBEL-AIN. 187 CHAPTER XXI. GIGANTIC ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS. Like giants stand, To sentinel enchanted land. Six days' march now took us to Jebel-Ain. Three rocky, reddish hills stood in front of us. No incidents occurred, but we passed smoking and smouldering villages. On the last day I was with the little mounted Soudanese. They suddenly set off at a scamper. They had marked down a native with two camels whose account of himself was that he was a * merchant,' but he was soon bound and haltered as a spy. Again we go off at a gallop. On this occasion the active little men surround a village, but there is not a soul to be found. We then crossed a most beautiful prairie. On our right lay the Nile, whose current was being stemmed by our little fleet. In the extreme distance loomed Jebel-Ain, a gigantic rock, standing boldly out on the t88 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. level horizon — a natural watch-tower for the enemy. A similar rock rose on our left. To the south-west lay forest and jungle. For the first time in our lives we began to understand the insignificant place man occupies in the scale of creation, numerically speak ing. The wild waste upon which we gazed was the empire — the great fatherland — of innumerable ferce : the ponderous elephant, the roaring lion, the graceful leopard, the stately giraffe, the noisome hyena, the savage panther, the roaming buffalo, the shy zebra, the keen-sighted lynx, the chattering, ubiquitous monkey, the tall ostrich, the dainty guinea-fowl, the gay parrot, the gazelle, whose name expresses his epithet,1 the howling, sleep-disturbing jackal, and the ' cony of the rocks,' all find a home here ; and I must not omit our sporting friend, the fox — a beautiful little fellow, smaller than his English brother, though boasting a bigger brush. The river and its banks are the play-place of the crocodile and the kurbash-yielding hippopotamus. It has been remarked, I hope in jest, that as Providence subordinates the distribution of organic creation to the wants of the locality, to wit: the camel in the desert, the mungoos and secretary bird in India, and the cinchona in the malarious districts 1 ' Gazelle ' means ' beautiful ' in Arabic. WHAT THE HIPPOPOTAMUS EXISTS FOR. 189 of tropical America, so in Africa, it is the peculiar mission of the hippopotamus to supply kurbashes ' for the backs of the natives. Absit omen. Though as I have before stated we were forbidden to shoot at game, I had some unexpected sport coming over these vast plains. An ownerless greyhound had attached himself to me on the line of march, but I learnt afterwards that the Soudan has a celebrated breed of greyhounds. Occasionally puss started up and I had a splendid race ; but I am bound to say that she was never caught ; whether the dog was too slow or the hare too fast, is too subtle a question to discuss. 1 It is hardly necessary to explain that the Jcurbask is a whip made from a strip of hippopotamus hide — a fearful weapon. As long ago as the time of the Boman Empire the Egyptian peasant had acquired the character of an extremely reluctant taxpayer, who had to be severely beaten. Ammianus Marcellinus says : ' He among them blushes who cannot show many strokes upon his body for non payment of tribute.' 190 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER XXII. REST IN A PICTURESQUE CAMP 1 AM TAKEN ILL. In this our day of proof, our land of hope. Jebel-Ain at last — the bourne to which I had sworn to ride, though I had been for some time ill and was gradually growing weaker. Colonel De Coetlogon had repeatedly urged upon me the necessity of going on board one of the nuggurs. Strange to say, I felt myself again, when I was once mounted. I rode on and on with the little Soudanese, our vedettes, until I saw, in rear, the army halt for the mid-day rest. I sprang out of the saddle and flung myself down under a thorny mimosa, on a leopard- skin provided for me by the chief of the plucky little band. Re-mounting was always painful : a horrid sensa tion and giddiness came over one, which passed off in a few seconds, however. My syce informed me that he was the only syce who would dare follow his master as he did. He fre- TRANQUIL DAYS. 191 quently called out ' Bagarra, Bagarra ! ' and when I expostulated on account of false alarms he said : ' Blame me not, it is for you not myself I am afraid. I fear your being cut off. Plenty of bad men about.' In spite of his nervousness he was a trusty henchman. I never had a better. I looked upon Jebel-Ain as the Jerusalem of our crusade. It was there our Senaar campaign was to end either in defeat or victory. Luckily, we had been forestalled, for, had the rebels held that posi tion, we might have had great difficulty in dislodging them. General Hicks sent the doctor to me, and I was put on board the steamer. I have often described our picturesque camp, but I look upon this scene as the loveliest of all, possibly because we had found here what we considered well-merited rest. There I used to lie on deck, the sun at my back, the Nile already beginning to roll rapidly — KufiaTtav avfjpidfiov y4\affjxa. Of waves The countless smiling. Our flotilla of nuggurs and steamers was crowded with men busily landing stores for our hungry soldiers. There were two or three boats belonging to Greek 192 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. sutlers who had had courage to follow us. From their decks arose women's voices singing lively Romaic airs accompanied by guitars. Camels and chargers Were being watered at the edge of the stream. General Hicks's broad gaily covered pavilion, over which flew the Pasha's blood-red flag, was surrounded by white tents dotting the plain and occupied by the officers. Here and there curling wreaths of smoke marked the site of camp kitchens. The red rock of Jebel-Ain, gaunt and bare, looked down upon us, and the woods in the purple distance slept tranquilly in the soft light of evening. The din of arms had ceased, but the bands played at intervals. ' Mellowed by distance,' they were not unmusical. Et jam nox tumido cselo Prsecipitat, suadentque cadentia sidera somnos. We heard the lions that, ' roaring after their prey, do seek their meat from God.' Waterton, in his wanderings in South America, says he would rather hear the roaring of 100 lions than the hum of one mosquito, and I quite agree with him, when the roaring is heard from the deck of a boat in mid-stream. The following extracts from a letter of Colonel Farquhar, published in the 'Egyptian Gazette' of THE SEROOT FLY. 193 August 1, 1883, gives an outline of General Hicks's movements, and contains a very interesting account of a hippopotamus hunt : — Extracts from Colonel Farquhar's Letter. ' Khartoum : June 29, 1883. ' General Hicks returned here two days ago from his visit to Ghebel-Ain, having been away a week. ' Nothing remarkable occurred either going up or coming down the Nile. The Baggara sheikh, whom we went to meet, did not put in an appearance, and from information we received it seems that he is still at Takale, having been unable to get back to his village in time to keep his appointment with the General at the Island of Abba. ' Small-pox has broken out amongst the garrison at Kawa, twenty-seven cases having been reported. The sick have been isolated as much as possible, and have been sent to an island opposite Kawa. ' We made a very disagreeable acquaintance on this voyage — viz., that of the seroot fly. This fly, which is about the size of a wasp, has an orange- coloured body, and in some cases, probably when fully developed, black and white wings. The attack of this animal is most determined. A sensation like the prick of a needle is followed by the blood flowing 194 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. instantaneously, and it is with difficulty that one can drive them away. We fell in with them on reaching the ford of Abu-Zed ; and they stuck to us from that place to Ghebel-Ain ; and again on the return journey to Abu-Zed. On reaching this place, which is in lat. 13° 10', they disappeared like magic. ' The natives of the country say that they are never seen N. of that latitude, and in connection with that I may mention a curious coincidence. Having been up and down the WTiite Nile very often — I might almost say perpetually during the last three months —I have seen many hundreds of hippopotami between Abu-Zed and Ghebel-Ain (a distance of twenty-five miles) ; and they are of course found to the S. of that latter place ; but, often as I have been up and down, I have never seen the hippopotamus N. of the ford. ' Some people maintain that the seroot fly and the tsetse fly are identical ; but I am rather inclined to think that this is a mistake, and for two reasons : 1st. Sir Samuel Baker, in his " Nile Tributaries of Abyssinia," frequently mentions the seroot fly, and always, I am bound to say, in terms of becoming respect ; but he never in any way hints that this is the dreaded tsetse fly, that scourge of S. Africa, which renders whole tracts of country uninhabitable. ' 2nd. When I was in the Transvaal two years ago SHILLOOK FISHERMEN. 195 I met at Potchefstroom a very intelligent gentleman, a great traveller and sportsman, who was well ac quainted with the country N. of the Limpopo River, where the tsetse fly is found. In course of conversa tion he told me a good deal about the country, and I certainly understood from him that the tsetse fly, although simply deadly to horses and other animals < did not attack men. ' Now I can answer for it in corpore vili that the seroot fly not only attacks men, but assaults them in a very disagreeable manner. For these two reasons I am inclined to think that they are not one and the same fly. ' Be that, however, as it may, there is no doubt that the seroot fly is quite bad enough, and that horses and even camels are driven simply mad when these flies are found in large quantities. ' Sir Samuel Baker mentions that on the Abbara River they are found between July 10 and October 10, consequently during the rainy season ; and I presume the same rule holds good here, although I was assured the other day by a Baggara sheikh that they did not become troublesome until after the rains were over. But I should say that he must have been mistaken. ' About ten miles north of Ghebel-Ain is a Shil look Island. These Shillooks are great fishermen, as o 2 1 96 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. well as hunters of crocodiles and hippopotami. More over, they swim like fishes, a very necessary qualifica tion in their calling. ' Hippopotami abound near their island, and I have seen as many as eight or ten on the surface of the water at the same time, within a radius of a few hundred yards, ' The other day I saw two Shillooks set off in a canoe (their canoes, by the way, are about the worst made in the world), armed only with their spears, to hunt hippopotami. These spears, the shaft of which is very long and sharp, have attached to the handle a rope, at the end of which is fastened a float made of ambatch wood. This wood, as I think I have men tioned before, is peculiarly buoyant, lighter even than cork, and it abounds between Abu-Zed and Ghebel-Ain. ' The mode of attack was somewhat as follows : — The Shillooks in their canoe floated quietly down the river until they got within a short distance of their game. One of them then stood up and hurled his lance at an old bull, striking him full in the side. The shaft, being made to detach itself from the handle, remained imbedded in the body of the hippopotamus, whilst the handle, with the rope and float attached, became released. The ambatch float served to show A HIPPOPOTAMUS HUNT 197 the position of the animal, no matter where he went. ' On this particular occasion the old bull was very angry, and made straight for the canoe, whereupon the Shillooks jumped into the river, and swam for their lives. They fortunately reached the bank in safety, but the hippopotamus vented his wrath upon the canoe, which he soon reduced to the consistency of lucifer matches. ' I was unable to stop and see the end of the performance, as our steamer was going on; but I have no doubt the Shillooks got their hippopotamus, as their sheikh told me they generally got one or two in the course of the week. ' These Shillooks are, physically speaking, very fine men, most of them over six feet high, and well made in proportion ; black as coals, and ugly as Satan. They are heathens. ' There is no doubt that all the country between the land of Abba and Ghebel-Ain, on both banks of the river, literally swarms with game. It has simply never been shot. ' All round Ghebel-Ain there are lions, elephants, and giraffes, besides many varieties of antelope. To the west of Abu-Zed there is a forest some ten miles in depth. This forest abounds in elephants. 198 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. 'As we were steaming along the river one day, close to the west bank, I saw a magnificent herd of hartebeeste quietly grazing, fully thirty of them, and all within 100 yards of the steamer. ' It was very tempting, but it was of no use firing at them, for we could not have stopped to pick them up if we had killed any, being at that time engaged in chasing other game — viz., Arabs. ' I was not up to that time aware that hartebeeste are to be found in these parts, supposing them to be peculiar to South Africa, Natal, and the Transvaal, where I have often shot them. ' We found the country all along the Nile perfectly quiet, the Arabs in charge of .the cattle watering or feeding them along the banks, no longer running away at the sight of a steamer. This is a good sign. ' There is, however, one arch-rebel named Gafoon, who escaped in a marvellous manner at the battle at Marabia. The very first shell we fired was beautifully aimed, and fell amongst a group of six chiefs. Three were killed on the spot, two were badly wounded, and only one, this Gafoon, escaped unhurt. ' This man occupied the country on the west bank of the Nile, between Drem and Abu-Zed, and would, if he dared, be up in arms against the Government at NATURAL GARDENS OF THE NILE. 199 once. This we know for a certainty, but, having no cavalry, we have been unable to pay him a visit ; for what chance would the Egyptian infantry, moving at the rate of one and a half or two miles an hour, have of catching the fleet-footed Arabs ? ' The weather is oppressively hot, and if by chance the thermometer falls say to 92° or 95° Fahr. we have a gale of wind, with clouds of blinding dust.' The interior of Senaar is the true lion country. They range between the two Niles. The farther south one goes the better the sport. The naturalist has a splendid field, as he can find birds not to be met with elsewhere, I believe. At the risk of being tedious I cannot help dwelling on the luxuriant vegetation near the banks of the Nile. How much more beautiful are Nature's gar dens than all the vile imitations, as they now seem to me, of the professional horticulturist. And yet the Nile banks often give one the idea of parks and gardens laid out with infinite care and design. These spots are thrown into contrast by groves of fantastic growth, such as poets and painters love to depict as the home of wood-nymphs and satyrs. Gnarled sycamore fig trees, with huge, wide-spread ing boughs and countless branches intertwined with mimosa and tamarinds, form labyrinthine thickets, 2oo HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. while above all towers the majestic baobab (Adan- sonia digitata), with its enormous trunk and great limbs. Troops of chattering monkeys dancing on every bough, and bounding from branch to branch, flocks of bright-hued parrots, and gigantic pendent bats, add to the grotesque wildness of these African scenes. The sense of luxuriance and abundance of life is heightened from contrast with the lifeless desert through which one has passed in order to reach these central regions of fertility. We encamped at the water's edge about three miles from the rocks above mentioned. It was here we were to have had the great fight. It was from this stronghold the Mahdi's chief sent us the defiant message, ' they would wait for us and eat us up,' and it was from this rock citadel that the proclamation written in Arabic was sent to us, 1 that the Great English Magician would be of no avail, the troops nothing.' He was mafeesh .'(a general term for nothing), they would be eaten up. It was at this very spot that last year 900 of the Khedive's troops were slaughtered at night. I may here confidently remark that from conversations heard among the soldiery, after the battle, on all sides, as well, as their bearing at the hour of peril — for God knows what would have been the conse- THE ENGLISH MAGICIANS. quence had the square once been broken1 — that the presence of the British officers among these men, whose ears had been ringing until now with nothing' but accounts of disastrous slaughter and defeat of the Khedive's troops, who formerly looked upon being sent to the Soudan as a sentence of death, gave them a hitherto unknown confidence and resolution to fight to the last. They considered themselves safe under our cegis. Thus was moral confidence inspired. They grasped their rifles firmly; their eyes were fixed on the advancing foe, whom they received with derisive cheers. I have reverted, perhaps, too abruptly to the battle-field, but my object is to show that the fellah soldier, if properly commanded, is of good material. 1 Since this was written the sad experience at El Teb has answered the question. HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER XXIII. FROM JEBEL-AIN BACK TO KHARTOUM. Still in thy right hand carry gentle peace. Five days we rested at Jebel-Ain. We were disap pointed perhaps at finding that the enemy had utterly cleared out, having either crossed over to Kordofan or gone far south. But this was compen sated by the knowledge that our object, as far as Senaar was concerned, was thoroughly accomplished; and to gain a victory with as little bloodshed as possible should be the axiom of a wise General and the urgent desire of all Christian soldiers and every humane man. The tact which General Hicks displayed in con ciliating the chiefs was perfect. They were sum moned to a divan. They showed a little trepidation at first, but the word of an Englishman, even on the White Nile, carries with it a guarantee of good faith. General Hicks pointed out to them that the Khedive A MONTH'S SICK LEAVE. 203 desired justice for all and prosperity for the Soudan, that at present they were ruining their own country, which might, under other circumstances, be so pros perous. He showed them the benefit to be derived from barter, friendly intercourse, and trade with Egypt, instead of perpetual fighting, which drives away enterprise. He bought cattle from them and presented them with robes. They themselves had sent in previously a number of head of cattle as a token of submission. All they wanted, they said, was to water and feed their cattle in peace, but the dread of the Mahdi compelled them to take up arms or they, too, would be killed. In five days our camp was broken up. Part of the army marched by land to Duem, the remainder were taken in ' merkebs ' and steamers to the same place. Our hospital steamer started one day before General Hicks. The officers consisted of Massey-, myself, and the doctor. At Duem, Hicks came on board to see me, as I protested against being sent back to Khartoum, especially as I heard we were going to make an expedition against Shat, where the rebels were supposed to be going to make a stand. Hicks then explained to me that the campaign was finished, and said that, as the doctors said 1 might 204 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. recover, he would not insist on my going back to Cairo, but would give me one month's sick leave, after which a board would report. He also said the Kordofan campaign would not take place for three months. ' You need not complain about being sent back to Khartoum, for we and the whole army will follow you shortly.' A slight sketch of the vicissitudes of this little garrison of Duem may not be out of place here. The Mahdi had three corps d'armee, so to speak. One was at Jebel Ghedda, 150 miles north-west of Kaka, on the White Nile ; another in Kordofan, on its way to attack Obeid ; a third occupied both banks of the river from Duem to the Island of Abba, on the west bank, and from Marabia, opposite the Island of Abba to Kaka. On August 23, the rebels appeared in great force around Duem, assaulting it with desperate energy, but they were utterly routed by the gallant little garrison, losing 4,500 men. When we were there the ground outside the zareeba was strewn with the bleaching bones of the slain. Our camp was situated on the site of the old battle-field. Since then Duem had been often threatened but never attacked. At the time we were there it was very unhealthy ; BACK TO KHARTOUM. the heat was intense, and the stench from dead bodies was insufferable. From Duem we ran down to Khartoum in three days. The nights were beautifully cool, and I enjoyed invigorating sleep on the hurricane-deck. 206 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. CHAPTER XXIV. THE RESULTS OF THE CAMPAIGN. Nor war or battle's sound Was heard the world around. — Milton._ The following letters, written at Khartoum shortly after my return from Senaar, contain, in addition to our arrival at Khartoum, other details relating to the campaign and the disposition of the enemy. At the risk of repeating myself, I print them, as conveying my impressions at the time. ' At last, after wearying, harassing marches, and one regular engagement, our campaign in the Senaar is finished ! Several chiefs, clothed in purple and fine linen, with their retinue, relying on the Englishman's faith, actually pitched their tents and slept within our lines the night before they tendered their submission to the " Great Magician." ' I think it will not be out of place here to point out that our victory, so easily won, was of the utmost im- THE DAUNTLESS ' BARB ART' 207 portance, especially when we look at the reverse side of the picture. Had the " Barbari," with their daunt less daring, succeeded in breaking the solid compact square and establishing a panic — a feat they have achieved over and over again with other armies of the Khedive — the consequences would have been dis astrous, not only to ourselves but to the Government, whose prestige would have been greatly impaired, if not lost. The rebels might easily have marched on Khartoum, and it would have taken months to have brought together a similar army, which, though small, is comparatively fairly trained and equipped, and has the utmost confidence in its leaders. ' These brave chiefs are too chivalrous to attack in the bush or to wait to be attacked. Like the knights of old, they charge with gleaming lance and streaming banner. ' After a few days' rest — utilised, as I have before said, in conciliatory measures which it would have been weak to have used before, but which, now that we stand conquerors, are wise — our camp at Jebel-Ain is broken up, and the troops proceed by land and river to Duem. ' Since writing the above I have just dipped into " Colonel Gordon in Central Africa," and, at page 248, find : " There are a number of very ancient swords 208 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. here (Dara), just like those the Crusaders 'used to use.' " ' I find also in a foot-note that after the Crusaders had ceased their attacks, the Mussulmans emigrated, one band going up the Nile to 10 deg. N. lat., camels not being able to live further south. They influenced the negro tribes, but to this day they are a distinct people. The armour came with them. It could not have been made in the Soudan, and must have come from Syria. ' I have often mentioned our steamers. Two of these, on occasions, have been converted into war- cruisers, having had thick mimosa plants nailed to the railings of the deck, and being made to carry guns and Nordenfeldts. It may, therefore, not be uninteresting to give a brief account of the previous history of these little vessels. We had seven — the "Ismailia," the "Shebeen," the " Tewfikeer," the "Borderie" (General Hicks's cruiser), the " Fasha " — carrying one seven-pounder, generally stationed at the "Ford" below Jebel-Ain— the "Tell Hawheer," and the " Safia." These, I should say, are about the length of our Thames " penny " steamerB, though the engines are more powerful. The " Ismailia " was brought in sections by Sir Samuel Baker for Lake Victoria Nyanza, or " the lake," as it is termed on the OUR FLEET AND ITS TONNAGE. 209 Nile. Gordon Pasha put her up at Khartoum, seeing the impossibility of transporting the pieces beyond the cataracts. The " Borderie," " Sana," and " Shebeen," came from Boulak (the Cairo dockyards) for Sir Samuel Baker's expedition in 1871. They were built of steel by Messrs. Samuda Brothers, London. On the wheel " 1864 " is engraved. The engines were made by Messrs. Penn, of Greenwich. They all range from about 240 to 256 tons — I speak at a venture — and the engines are from 32- to 35-horse power. Besides these, three other steamers were sent out to Khartoum in 1864— the " Tanpkeeya," the " Fasha," above mentioned, and the " Mosselleema." Last year the " Abbas " and " Mohamed Ali " were put together at Khartoum, having been brought here in sections by order of Gordon Pasha. Two other steamers, in sections, are yet in the arsenal here. The "Khedive," brought in sections by Sir Samuel Baker, was put together at Gondokoro in 1871, but Gordon Pasha took her to pieces in 1876 and rebuilt her at Darfile, beyond the rapids. She is now on the lake. The " Nyanza " is there also, brought in sections by Sir S. Baker, and put together by Gordon Pasha. One of the oldest of all has its once gilded and elegant cabin below ; but it has gone to rack and ruin now, not having been used for years. Experience showed p 210 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. that the heat is too great for life below deck. The later steamers have their after-cabins on deck, on the principle of the American river boats. ' In three days we reached Duem. This is another of the fortified camps, dirty and evil-smelling, after the manner of Kawa. Both are typhoid fever traps, it being the inveterate habit of the Egyptian soldiery to defile the water which they, as well as we, drink. As we passed Kawa, the stench of the Nile at this spot had become insupportable. Besides this, there are bodies buried under the very ground where the forces are encamped. ' On arriving here we heard that one of the Mahdi's chiefs — Fadlallah — probably the one who, at the battle, rode off apparently untouched, carrying a gaily-coloured standard from the battle, was lying badly wounded at a village three hours' march from us, with a bodyguard of a hundred of his retainers. Had we had a squadron or so of cavalry we could have made a dash at them, surrounded the village by moonlight, and carried him off, but it would have been useless to harass our foot-soldiers with a long march, perhaps to find him gone. Shat, against which we were to have marched, was reported deserted. ' After three days I was sent in one of the steamers THE PALM GROVES OF KHARTOUM. 211 to Khartoum. We carried the first detachment of the returning army. Already we could see, by the cattle drinking and browsing at the water's edge on both banks of the river, so utterly deserted when we went up, that confidence was returning, and that the poor deluded natives were beginning to go back to their pastoral pursuits. No longer, as heretofore, were shots fired at our steamer ; we carried at the masthead a white flag, and the meaning of this they seemed to understand. Nor was any fear shown as we glided down the Nile. The discordant water- wheels were at work again, and the fertile land was smiling.' On arrival at the deliciously shady palm groves of Khartoum, we found hundreds of natives, men and women, washing — attending the sakeeyehs — dis porting themselves like ducks in the blue waters, or digging with their wooden hoes. As we paddled by, with screaming whistle, broad crescent flag gaily fluttering to the breeze, and the band on the paddle- box playing the Khedivial Hymn, to our surprise, one and all struck work and ran after us. The women sent up their shrill cry, whose note, a musician said to me the other day, 'We have it not in European music' It is a sign of joy, approbation, and ad miration, and is invariably uttered at weddings and p 2 212 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. other seasons of rejoicing. I should like to know its origin ; I have heard nothing like it in any part of the world. We were followed in troops to the landing- place, with every demonstration of joy. I did not know that the Soudanese were such an excitable people. We took up our quarters in a large house by the river-side (originally occupied by Gordon Pasha) with grateful feelings, and, I may say, with satis faction, for our campaign, though comparatively short, had been crowned with success. Few who have not been parched and broiled for days in a tropical climate, at times without tents at all, and at all times with bad water to drink, and short rations, can realise the luxury of having within one's reach water-melons, milk, eggs, and bread. The first news we heard was that Shendy had been attacked, but that the enemy had met with a repulse, and that several prisoners had been taken. Subse quently rumours reached us that the Mahdi had retreated to the mountains, taking all his treasure, after murdering the chief, Manna, whom he had taken prisoner. Manna had come to blows with the Mahdi for having cut off the hand of one of his followers, and having cut out the tongue of an other. OUR STEAMBOAT KAPTAN. General Hicks arrived a day or two after us, but returned shortly to Duem, a strong garrison being left there. The following extracts from letters written at the time will give the reader some further idea of Khartoum and its ways when poor Hicks was there. The interest taken in the fate of General Gordon will, perhaps, excuse the digression. ' An Oriental dearly loves a row, and contrives to do as little work as he can for his money with as large amount of noise as he can muster. A vile steamboat kaptan is no exception. We have now several steamers lying off Khartoum, one or two out side my window. These whistle and scream all day at the smallest provocation ; but three mornings ago there was a sound from afar, an additional screeching — a steamer of importance was evidently at hand. It was that of the English Pasha arriving from Abba and Ghebel-Ain, where he went last week to meet by appointment a powerful sheikh. For some reason or other General Hicks found no one ready to meet him — probably caused by Sheikh Asaker being still de tained at Tagelles, where he had been called by Mek (King) Adam to meet him in council regarding the steps to be taken for either a hostile movement against the Mahdi or for the protection of their tribes. However, the trip was beneficial, the Nile 214 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. breeze being refreshing and a restorative. Small-pox of a very virulent description had broken out among the black troops at Kowa. That was the only news brought back. ' A gallop early in the morning is the only thing in this enervating climate to keep one in really good health. The General is in the saddle at 5.30, taking with him members of his staff for the benefit of slug gish livers. There is always a tendency, after a tedious campaign, to give way to a reactionary indo lence and mild dissipation in the way of lying in bed, regaling in luxuries so long denied, and general lazi ness ; then that useful but troublesome organ above mentioned begins to revenge itself for liberties taken. " 0 dura messorum ilia ! " Yes, old Horace wonders at the digestive powers of the reapers who could gorge any amount of garlic ; but with open-air exercise and hard work, what cannot one eat and drink? — any thing, except Nile water, the thickness of pea soup, well saturated with deposits of Egyptian camp filth. That would beat the reapers ! ' Travellers learn as well as see strange things. Up till now I have always thought that of all innocent and nutritious nourishment, the nourishment of babes and sucklings, milk, was the best. Having been hors de combat lately from climatic causes, I was attended THE TRADE WITH KHARTOUM. 215 by the Government Medical Officer of the Soudan — a man of the greatest experience, who has resided here for twenty-five years, having been the medical adviser of Baker and Gordon. He informed me that milk drunk alone in this country is poison ; that even the natives have to mix it with water. Now I was aware that the dusky Oriental " Kitty," who comes every morning with her milking-pail, or rather gourd, puts a good supply of " Simpson " in my allowance, but I had no idea she kindly did it for sanitary purposes. Eggs, too, are pronounced an abomination — rank poison, however fresh. Both these was I told to avoid if I wished to recover, and not to partake of when recovered.' ' There was a large traffic carried on between Obeid, Khartoum, and Darfour, and thence with Lower Egypt and Cairo by way of Dongola — gum arabic, ivory, ostrich feathers, tamarinds, and saltpetre. The ivory and tamarinds are brought by the Arabs from the south, while the saltpetre and ostrich feathers are imported from Darfour. Large caravans used to proceed weekly between here and Obeid ; even now there are Rababish Arab merchants who risk the journey. They go with about 200 camels, and are well armed ; they carry camel-loads of coffee, sugar, candles, and soap ; and, after the fashion of 2)6 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. the blockade-runners during the American war, cal culate on making 1,000 per cent, if they succeed in reaching Obeid. On my asking why they did not carry grain, considering the famine prices of food there, I was told that the bulk would not make it worth their while, at whatever price they might sell it. ' Twelve days ago one of these large caravans was attacked and plundered by a tribe of wandering Arabs, about two days' journey from Duain, near Mount Arashol, on the high road between Khartoum and Obeid. By the map it may be seen that this road passes by several villages and small towns, where these caravans also do business. ' The "sisters " and priests who were captured when the garrison surrendered, and who were connected with the Roman Catholic Austrian mission at Khar toum, are safe, but though heavy ransom has been offered they are still detained. The Nile is rapidly rising, but the rains here have not commenced. It is still very hot, from 95 to 103 in the shade. Fruit, such as bananas, lemons, limes, and grapes, are beginning to get plentiful, and meat is very cheap. The best mutton sells at 5 piastres an oke, beef at 3 piastres — the oke being equivalent to 2£ lbs- avoirdupois. An Egyptian piastre is nearly 2\d. Chickens are sold at 3^ piastres, geese at 10 piastres, A LARGE FISH 217 and eggs at eight for a piastre. Fish is very plen tiful, and I join issue with my "Murray," who says (speaking of the Nile fish) that " there is not one worth eating ; they are all soft and woolly, and have a strong flavour of mud." Perhaps he only alludes to the Nile fish of Egypt proper. One morning I saw four men carrying a fish ; it was exactly twice the length of my sword, of the carp species. I wish I had bought it. and stuffed it. All I can say is that I have tasted excellent fish here and higher up the river, the flesh being white and firm. ' Around Khartoum the village people are occupied in agriculture, planting dour a, cotton, and beans. They have few cattle, sheep, or goats. Some employ themselves in making mats and baskets, as well as working in iron, making agricultural instruments, spear-heads, knives and choppers, in which they are very expert. Coarse cotton stuffs are also manu factured, and nets. At night, especially if moonlight, their great delight in all the towns and villages, over the whole country, is to collect in large groups, which are gathered by the sound of the tam-tam, blowing of horns, and the shrill " oye-oye-oye-oye-oye " cry of the ladies. You know when you hear this that some great entertainment is to take place. I have attended these gatherings — you are always welcome. The girls 218 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. and women sit in the centre, where there is generally a fire — for what purpose I know not ; for illumination, I suppose. They are covered with a profusion of jewellery, some of this really valuable. Outside the first group sit men performing on the native guitar, tambourine, and tam-tam. Large jars of " merissa " are handed round, and Vermouth or absinthe and arrack and mastic introduced on great occasions, and the women begin to sing love songs. I cannot say they care much for time or the accompaniments. ' Dinner parties at Khartoum are. few and far between, you may be sure, but I attended one last Sunday, to which General Hicks and staff were bidden, and there I tasted some excellent mayonnaise made from the fish boulte, a species of perch. The dinner was given by Colonel Marcopolo Bey, Under-Secretary for European Affairs, and for a long time interpreter to Sir Samuel Baker. After dinner we enjoyed our coffee alfresco in the cool lantern -lit garden. ' The evenings in the Soudan are pleasant and cool, and the climate is no more thought of. With cigarette or pipe we enjoyed ourselves, but we were unprepared for the truly Oriental entertainment that was to follow. As we sat puffing away on easy chairs we suddenly heard singing from several female voices in a monotone key, accompanied by a clapping of DANCING GIRLS. 219 hands. Then, emerging from the shade of the trees, we perceived a group of native women. With a wriggling gait and measured step, a dark girl, with head thrown back and chest and shoulders bare, approached us. On she came with contortions which, if not graceful, did credit to her muscular powers. She was soon joined by four or five more companions. Nearer and nearer they all danced towards us — if one may call their peculiar antics " dancing " — till their close proximity became anything but desirable or agreeable. Their hair alone, steeped as it was in rancid grease, without going into further personal details, gave an atmosphere the reverse of fragrant. Some of us, fortunately, had small iron tables in front of us, with which we formed barricades ; the helpless condition of those without those safeguards, hemmed in to suffocation by the redolent crowd of swarthy nymphs, was ludicrous in the extr-eme. At last they retired, perceiving they were not fully appreciated, and com menced to prepare for a dance still more animated. During the performance of this, the "rachet," a girdle from which long strips of leather hang, is the only costume, but it was intimated to the troupe that we could dispense with the rest of the entertainment. These girls, we were told by our host, are hired for every grand entertainment, and not a night passes, he 220 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. said, that they are not engaged for some grand feast. They are indispensable at a marriage or birth cele bration. Now I have attended "nauches" in India, where the girls are pretty and dancing extremely graceful. I have witnessed, too, the dancing of many semi-civilised nations in different parts of the world. In all of these, no matter how peculiar they may be, there is some natural gracefulness infused, some of interest to note, something fascinating or even romantic ; but the grotesque and coarse " fantasias," as they term them, of Soudanese women are simply, to my idea, repulsive and utterly devoid of grace. ' General Hicks Pacha, accompanied by some of his staff, proceeds to Abba Island on Thursday to hold a " divan" with some more sheikhs who wish to submit to Government. I hope this place will not prove a Capua after Cannae in a small way ; but many of us are certainly not in as" good health as we were during the campaign. There are temptations in the way of what now seem luxuries, leading to mild dis sipation. The climate is treacherous and enervating. Eggs and milk, if indulged in too much, as I have' already said, are dangerous ; and the French wines sold here are asserted by the experienced Dr. Georges to be poisonous, and even the sugar melon to be feverish. However, no one can be said to be decidedly INTERESTING LETTERS. ill. Altogther, the health of the English staff has been much better than anticipated.' The following letter was found on the body of the Sheikh Adder Rubber-il-Mandoob, who was killed at the late battle. It was found by Captain Evans, Intelligence Department, who translated it : — ' In the name of God, the merciful and compas sionate. Thanks be to God, the bountiful Ruler, prayers unto our Lord Mohamed, and unto his people resignation. From the children of Abdel Dine, of the Araki tribe, Abder Rubber Sheikh-il-Mandoob, and Sheik Mohamed-el-Zain, to our long expected Lord and preacher, master of learning, and knower of events. God does not inflict on you the knowledge of misfortunes. Your auxiliaries are those of the all- powerful. They fought at the battle of the Om Shoka. Some were killed, others wounded, and they suffer much from want. Their legs are broken, and have no strength or means to go to you. Tell us what to do with them. They ask for means of living from the treasury.' ' By the kind permission of General Hicks, I have been allowed to take a copy of a letter received by him on the 17th. It is very important, as it throws much light on the present state of affairs. 222 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. From Said Bey, commanding the Garrison. ' Duain : June 13, 1883. ' I have to acknowledge the receipt of your Excel lency's letter of the 10th inst. On the 11th, Sheikh Dishoun, of Berain, came here with the intelligence that natives from Ed-el-odd reported Mohamed Akmed to be still at Obeid. His family and baggage, on the way from Gebel Gebeer, had been stopped on their way through the Tagelli country. King Adam had closed the road leading to Obeid, and had sworn to kill Mohamed Akmed if he should go his way. It was also said that Mohamed Akmed was recalling his emissaries from every direction to Obeid, in order to hold a council on the Tagelli question. Several had already reached him, and the others were on their way. Asaker Abu Kelane, when called to Obeid to furnish a supply of horses, fled from hia village, and is much afraid of meeting the fate of Manna. The Kababish tribe has supplied two hundred camels to the rebels. On the same date, early in the morning, some eight robbers on horseback appeared at some distance from the camp, and had a skirmish with some of our men, who were out wood-cutting. There was no loss on either side, but the enemy captured a A DESPATCH FROM SAID. 223 slave girl belonging to the camp. A reconnoitring party was immediately sent out, and they chased the rebels for two hours and a half, but, in con sequence of the enemy having better horses, we were unable to come up to them. I have the honour to be'sir> 'Said. ' His Excellency General Hicks Pasha. ' King Adam is king of the Tagelli country, south of Kordofan. Asaker Abu Kelan is a very powerful chief of the Baggara Arabs. ' " Madame " Mohamed Ahmed and daughters were on their way to Hofrat El Nehass. King Adam has since written to Sheikh Asaker, begging of him to come to Tagelli to take council with him as to their uniting against Mohamed Achmet (the Mahdi) . Asaker and Marma (the sheikh recently killed by the Mahdi) are branches of the same large tribe. This looks like trouble in store for the Mahdi. Asaker has gone to meet King Adam. ' I send you as curious a specimen of an Arab official letter as could be found even among the corre spondence between the Greek Byzantine Emperors and the Turks, or Saladin and Frederick Barbarossa. The " magician " is, of course, Hicks Pasha. The writer died of his wounds in a village about three 224 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. hours' march from Duem. The letter is an attempt to strike terror into the Khedive's troops, who, until now, have been so awfully cut up. It reached us before the battle, and quite convinced us that there was no chance of the Mahdi's men giving in without fighting. (Translation.) ' In the name of God, the Merciful and Compas sionate. Thanks be to the Most High and Bountiful, unto whom be prayer and praise, and unto all believers peace. This writing is from Abd-el-Rubbu il Khalipha Fadlallah Ibrahim Wald Kerif to Seyyed Negley Hossin, Commandant at Duem, to inform you that I have not written to you, nor you to me, for a con siderable time. ' We are now going to visit you in person, and if you are devout, and obedient to the will of God, His Apostle and Sayyed il Mahdi, your safety is assured, notwithstanding your refusal in the past to obey the commands of our Lord the Mahdi. God willing, we are coming to you with armies and firearms whose numbers can be counted only by the Most High, and with arms which you possess not, including guns, rockets, and Remingtons without number. Remember also that our spiritual arms are more effective than FADLATTAHS LETTER. 225 those made by man ; and, with power of our Lord the Mahdi, this alone will suffice to crush armies. ' The number of our forces are as follows : — Khalipha Mauna, 10,000; Khalipha Zain, 5,000 Khalipha Zahairi, 7,000 ; Khalipha Asaker, 11,000 Said Ahmed Makashfi, 9,000 ; Niohol, Mativa, 4,000 Ahmed Gafoon, 7,000; Hossien Hodida, 12,000 Bahid, 6,000; Hajabkor, 6,000; Moosa, 3,000 Khalipha Abdalla, 1,000; Ali Wald Nur, 2,000 These 83,000 men have been sent to us by the Mahdi the long-expected one. I pity you when they fall upon you. The fate of others who have gone before you will befall all and everyone who disbelieves in our Lord. Look at the banks of the Nile, and the desola tion and ruin inflicted upon those who disobeyed us. You know also of the destruction of Ziarra Bara and Hazim, and other places which have been visited by the sword of God. The same misfortune will befall Duem. The Almighty has said, " Give good advice unto all true believers." I am told that a certain great magician has been to see you and lied to you. He will have nothing but disappointments. Do not believe in his lies and tricks, else the con sequence will fall upon you and those who go with him. The magician will not come out of his steamer, and the catastrophe will fall upon yourself and the Q 226 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. people. If you are sorry for the past and obedient to the Mahdi you have nothing to fear ; but you will inform us, and we will protect you from all harm. If you wish to know of Amer Makashfi, I may tell you that he is going to Kawa with 40,000 and a body guard from the Mahdi to accompany him. These will meet the magician at Kawa. And if you ask me about the Mahdi, he is going to Khartoum shortly. (Signed) ' Fadlattah, Wald Kerif. ' Shat (about April 20).' FAREWELL TO POOR HICKS. 227 CHAPTER XXV. A RIDE THROUGH THE DESERT. Portance in my travels' history : Wherein of antres vast, and deserts idle, Bough quarries, rocks and hills whose heads touch heaven It was my hint to speak. — Shakespeare. Much of the following has already appeared in print in the form of notes from the ' Diary of the last European who rode through the Desert from Berber to Suakin.' Tempus abire tibi est.1 On the evening of July 15, at the hour of sunset — one of those glorious sunsets seen only in Central Africa — I embarked, on six months' forced leave, on my dahabeeah lying off Gordon's old quarters at Khartoum, where Baron von Seekendorf, Captain Massey, and myself had been billeted for six weeks on our return from the campaign above alluded to. Hicks Pasha, Colonel Farquhar, Colonel De Coet logon, Captain Massey, Captain Warner, and Captain 1 It is time for thee to depart. Q 2 228 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. Evans came to bid me farewell. Little did I think it would be the last. I was very angry with the doctors, as I inwardly felt I was recovering, although despe rately pulled down and weak. Poor Hicks's last words to me were : ' Instead of being angry with the doctors, you ought to be excessively obliged to them.' In return they might have said, ' Nos morituri te salutamus.' I think so too ! Vale ! Vale ! Curisque ingentibus seger Spem vultu simulat, premit altum corde dolorem.1 The ropes are cast off, and now, as I drop down the river, the nodding plume-like foliage of the palm- groves of Khartoum is silvered by the moon, that — Bising in glorious majesty, At length apparent Queen Unveiled her peerless light ; burnishing witn a sheen of matchless beauty the fast- flowing river, whilst here and there stand out in sharply cut relief against the sky the graceful curves of the far-sweeping yards of the Nile boats lying tran quilly at anchor. My boat's crew consisted of twelve Arabs, varying in shade from a light olive to a dark brown. Under a fresh southerly breeze we sped 1 And sick with mighty cares, on his countenance he feigns hope (while) in his heart he conceals deep sorrow. THE SIXTH CATARACT. rapidly do'wn the stream. The monotonous sound — something between a creak and a groan — of the sakiyeh ' wheels on the bank was from time to time relieved by the sharp cry of ' Hhales ! ' from the reis, whose crew responded by a vociferous ' Hader ! ' as they slackened sail to avoid the sudden squalls which abound on the Nile. Passing the ruins of Tamamat,2 we arrived in the course of the next day at the sixth cataract,3 a place which has proved fatal to many a Nile boat. The evi dences of this were apparent, and among other wrecks 1 The sakiyeh, as the reader will have already noted, is an apparatus in universal use for irrigation. It consists of a vertical wheel sus pended over the well or cistern. Over the wheel is hung an endless chain, the lower portion of which dips into the water. To this chain are fixed a series of earthenware pitchers, which, as the wheel revolves, carry the water from the well and deposit it in a trough or spout communicating with the channel of irrigation. The motive- power is furnished by oxen, and is communicated to the vertical wheel by means of a horizontal toothed-wheel, on the principle of the bevel-wheel in modern machinery. This is turned by the ox, who plods round in a circle, attached to a long shaft. The sakiyeh is invariably shaded by a tree or an artificial arbour. 2 Tamamat was burnt in 1844 during the slave revolt, which was to have broken out simultaneously at Senaar, Kassala, and Khar toum. The Negroes who had fled were overtaken beyond Senaar and massacred. 3 This so-called cataract is an irregular rocky obstruction, a some what tortuous passage through which was blasted by Moon-tur, a former governor, the only upright one they ever had. Under his direction one of the highest clusters of rocks in the Nile was cleared away in two months. 230 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. was one of a small steamer. The river at this point is held in the rigid embrace of precipitous rocks, whose base is clad with rank vegetation, though their summits stand out weird and naked against the sky. I was forcibly reminded of my passage up with General Hicks, when our steamer grounded, and we had to haul on our cable for a painful half-hour before we got afloat. We next reached Shendy, now a straggling village, shorn of its former importance as the head-quarters of the Shaygyeh tribe, a powerful race dwelling on the eastern bank of the Nile. Shendy, obscure as it is to-day, is noteworthy as having been a stronghold of resistance to Egyptian conquest. The flame of insurrection which burns so fiercely to-day has been long smouldering in Shendy, which was the scene of a terrible tragedy in 1821. Ismail Pasha, the son of the great Mehemet Ali, was sent by his father to col lect tribute and obtain the submission of Nimr, the chief of the Shaygyehs, who had earned the sobriquet of the ' Tiger of Shendy,' on account of his ferocity. Ismail treated the ' Tiger ' with contumely, and went so far as to strike him with the stem of his chibouk. This blow, however, seems to have struck a brilliant idea into his head. He no longer pleaded for time to meet the demands of Ismail, but promised immediate A TERRIBLE TRAGEDY. 231 compliance, and retired from the presence of the bully ing Pasha. He called together his family and the head-men of his former subjects, and represented to them the insatiable nature of the demands. They then hit upon a plan by which they thought to be relieved from all further spoliation. Camels, sheep, horses, corn, dhurra, and money were collected and brought to the Pasha with the greatest alacrity and cheerfulness, and, moreover, the Egyptian troops were invited by the inhabitants to partake of a banquet. Every dainty which Shendy could afford was liberally provided for the Egyptians, who washed down their repast with copious libations of ' merissa.' The Pasha's guard and the sentries were treated with the same hospitality, and the most sumptuous food was placed before Ismail himself. Implentur veteris Bacchi. For veteris Bacchi, read ' merissa.' At midnight a great cry arose. A circle of flames surrounded the whole town, while the Pasha's hut itself was in a blaze. Up rose the Pasha at that blaze of light ; but it was too late. In vain he endeavoured to rush through the flames — he was burnt to a cinder, 232 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. together with his trusty Mamelukes who guarded him. In the still hours of the night the inhabitants had issued forth, each bearing a flambeau, and had set fire to the piles of corn, maize, and forage which had been brought in as tribute, and which had been piled around the Pasha's hut. Many soldiers, however, dashed through the flames, escaped to their boats, and returned to Khartoum. The rest perished in that awful holocaust, and the lurid sky echoed the last cry of agony long ere morning dawned upon the smoulder ing heaps which told the tale of death. The Defterdar, the Viceroy's son-in-law, had just completed the conquest of Kordofan — a conquest which had been attended by the foulest atrocities. At Bara, at El Obeid, and wherever they had marched, the ' Turkish ' army had murdered, pillaged, and ravished. When the Defterdar heard of the massacre at Shendy, he at once collected all the troops at his dis posal, and marched on the town. The retribution was terrible, the revenge a fearful one. The inhabitants of Shendy were slaughtered, irre spective of age or sex. Nimr, however, who had been informed of the Defterdar's approach, succeeded in escaping with his family to Abyssinia.1 1 It is to these massacres in Kordofan and Senaar that is due the THE BATTLE OF BARA. 233 Shortly after leaving Shendy we came to a range of mountains, on the right bank, of a striking and undying hatred of the ' Turks ' (the Soudanese call the Egyptians Turks) to this day. It is a parallel case to that of the Irish, who to this day hand down the tradition of the atrocities committed by Cromwell's army, allowing for the difference of time. Mehemet Ali invaded Kordofan at the same time that his son Ismail invaded Nubia and Senaar. Mehemet Ali advanced by way of Dongola and the desert on Kordofan with 4,000 cavalry and in fantry, nine pieces of artillery, and 1,400 Bedaween. After a terrible march of eleven days over the burning sand, they entered Kordofan at Kedjmar. Kordofan was then held by the Sultan of Darfour. His yoke was an easy one, and he governed through a viceroy, who advanced to meet the Egyptian army with what natives he could collect and his Darfour cavalry, men clad in armour and well equipped. These cavaliers, attired in plumed helmets and coats of mail, and mounted on richly-caparisoned horses, like the knights of old, turned out in gallant array eager for the approaching combat. Their departure was made the occasion of a great gala. Feasting, drinking, dancing were freely indulged in, and the women urged them on to deeds of valour in their songs. Mehemet Ali found them full of fight, and drawn up on a plain near Bara. The Egyptian guns at once opened fire. They were charged and carried with great loss by the Kordofanese, who then threw themselves upon the infantry, but in doing so were mown down by hundreds, and had to retire. Still the battle raged without distinct success an either side. Again and again the Turkish cavalry charged and were repulsed, but at last the Bedaween surrounded the Kordofanese, whose chiefs were now slain. The guns were retaken, and were again turned against the Kordofanese, whilst the musketry made fearful havoc. A complete rout followed. Bara was taken and sacked, while the vanquished Kordofanese retired upon Obeid, which was shortly after wards taken. The plunder was enormous, the lion's share being taken by the Defterdar. The women, stripped of their jewels, were handed over to the soldiers. The native army now made a short stand at Dar Hamz, but was again completely routed. It then broke 234 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. fantastic formation. They have the appearance of gigantic steps, and are beautifully wooded at their base. Ten miles further on we sighted the pyramids of Meroe, which bear inscriptions containing the names of thirty of the long race of kings and queens from whom was descended Queen Candace, who held sway over the so-called island of Meroe, and who so vigorously opposed the Romans. On the most southerly of the pyramids is found the name of Meru, a king of the country, and first priest of up completely, portions of it fleeing to the villages and portions to the mountains, principally to Gebel-el-Deir, within sight of Obeid, where the Kordofanese have maintained their independence until the present time; It was to this mountain the Mahdi intended to retire with his family and worldly goods in case General Hicks were suc cessful in sowing disaffection among his followers, or had beaten him in battle. The summit of Gebel-el-Deir is a table-land, and reservoirs serve to store up rain-water in the rainy season. No cruel monster who ever persecuted an oppressed people surpassed this Defterdar. Men were blown from guns for the slightest complaint, and for the most trifling offences. I lately came across a story which, if true, shows him to have been a man of the most refined cruelty. It is customary throughout Islam, at the feast of Bairam, for the personal attendants of Pashas and high dignitaries to receive pre sents. The retainers of the Defterdar came to him according to custom to wish him long life and happiness, asking at the same time for the usual backsheesh. ' Certainly,' he replied, ' what would you ? ' ' Well,' was the answer, ' we are badly off for shoes, would your Excellency allow us to be supplied from the stores ? ' ' Certainly,' replied the Defterdar, ' you shall receive them to-morrow.' On the following day the servants were brought to the shoeing-shed, and shod. all round with iron horse-shoes ! THE OMARAB MOUNTAINS. 235 Ammon. Close by the ruins of ancient Meroe' are the villages of Maruga, Dangeleh, and Sur. An hour afterwards we approached the picturesque range of the Omarab Mountains, on the right bank, and the village of Gebel. The fertility of both banks is wonderful at and after this point, and the scenery most beautiful. The slopes are luxuriant, and in a state of high cultivation. But I missed the immense flocks of wild- fowl we had encountered on the voyage up. They had migrated. The only sounds to be heard were the ceaseless screeching and moaning of the sakiyehs, at work night and day. The villages about here are very numerous, and consist of too- koolis, or conical- shaped huts, built of the stalks of dhurra (maize). Four days after leaving Khartoum I arrived at Berber, the point at which I was to bid farewell to the Nile, and strike off across the desert to Suakin — anything but a pleasure-trip, above all, in the month of July. Berber has been often described. The town consists of a collection of mud huts, sparsely interspersed with houses of loftier preten sions. Whilst lying on the deck of my dahabeeah, exhausted by the heat and enfeebled by dysentery, I observed the singular figure of a man watching me from the bank. He was clad in a loose caftan, 236 HICKS PASHA IN- THE SOUDAN. and wore a tarboosh, swathed in the ample folds of a silken koufieh, the picturesque scarf worn by the Arabs as a protection against the burnmg rays of the sun. His girdle was furnished with dagger and pistol, and his nether man was encased in boots and breeches. His face was tanned, and he was ' bearded like the pard.' The wearer of this incongruous costume was O'Donovan, the adventurous war corre spondent of the ' Daily News,' whose name has recently been before the public in connection with his plucky and desperate ride to Merv, in Central Asia. The last time we had met was on a memorable occasion. It was at Constantinople, and O'Donovan was in durance vile in the prison of Galata Serai at Pera, whither he had been consigned on a charge of having insulted the Sultan. I well remember passing a portion of Christmas Day with him there, and at midnight I had the pleasure of assisting at his release, which was granted on the representations of Lord Dufferin. Poor O'Donovan had an instinc tive love of dangerous adventures. Little did I think this was to be his last when I bade him God-speed the next day, on his way to Khartoum. He was accompanied by Mr. Power, who had come out as special artist for the ' Pictorial World,' and is TURKISH DINNER ETIQUETTE. 237 now acting British Consul at Khartoum. Mr. Schuver, the Dutch traveller I have already referred to, had been O'Donovan's companion in many a wild adventure, and it was a strange fatality which brought them together once more at Khartoum, each haviug wandered in lands far apart ; and still stranger was it that the two should meet with their deaths at almost the same time, so shortly afterwards. Mr. Schuver was killed on the Bahr Ghazal last winter. Before leaving Berber I dined with the Miralai (Colonel) of mounted Bashi-Bazouks, who was on his way to join Hicks with 800 horsemen. I will not dwell upon the nature of the feast. Turkish dinners have been often enough described. The interminable courses of sweets, alternating with savouries, and the deft practice required to detach the morsels with the right hand (to use the left would be a gross breach of etiquette), are experiences with which most people are familiar, either personally or by descrip tion. The most difficult feat is the partaking of soup. An accurate eye and a steady hand are needed to carry the contents of the shallow spoon from the common bowl in the centre of the table to the mouth. ' He who sups with the devil must have a long spoon ' is equally applicable to him who dines a la Turque. We were a merrj party, however, that 238 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. night at Berber, and my last words to my host, the Bashi-Bazouk colonel, were : ' We will have a good dinner at Khartoum when I come back.' Poor fellow ! he was killed with the rest at the awful butchery of Melbass. The next day, after obtaining camels with some difficulty, I started for my ride across the desert to Suakin. As I turned my back upon the tall acacias and palms of Berber, and set my face towards the desert, the town, miserable in itself, seemed invested with a relative charm ; and its dusky daughters, with their scanty skirts of leather, cut into strips and modestly weighted with leaden pellets, were regarded by me as comparatively within the circle of civilisa tion. As an invalid I was accommodated with an angareb. The angareb is a sort of bed, which is laid transversely across the back of the camel, and is kept in its place by the pommels of the saddle passed through holes in the angareb itself. This queer structure was crowned by a canopy of palm-leaves and matting, which gave it the appearance of a cage. I have tried most modes of locomotion, from an elephant to a Cairo jackass, but this is immeasurably the worst. The jolting was agonising in my weak condition, and by the time I arrived at the first halting-place I was black and blue from the two A RIDE IN AN ANGAREB. 239 pommels, between which I lay, driven as they were through the angareb to steady it. We left Berber at seven o'clock in the evening. The party consisted, besides myself, of an Egyptian officer, also sick, two Bashi-Bazouks, ordered by Hicks as a guard, and the Bishareen camel-drivers, with seven camels, three being appropriated to myself and baggage, and the remainder laden with dhurra and water. A word here as to the camel, the much-belauded ' ship of the desert,' that enjoys, among those who have not come into contact with him, a much better reputation than he deserves. Patience is a virtue with which he is supposed to be pre-eminently endowed. As far as my experience goes, he is about the most impatient brute in the whole animal creation. He grumbles and swears when required to start, and grumbles and swears when he is required to stop ; roars at you when you get on, roars at you when you get off, as he does when he is laden, and when he is unladen. His patience is usually the result of senility. He is usually vicious, and is often addicted to bolting. Neither is his intelligence sufficiently strong to allow him to distinguish noxious plants, and he is at all times a subject of anxiety to his driver on this account. The Bishareen are a fine tall race — slender, but 240 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. well-proportioned. They 'take especial care of their teeth, which are regular and of lustrous whiteness, which is in part due to their simple diet, and in part to a root (raki-wood) which they chew perpetually. Their dress is scanty, but graceful. It consists of a piece of white linen wound about the waist and thrown over the shoulder. Each man carries a long straight sword and a shield of small dimensions, made of hippopotamus or rhinoceros' hide. A spear is carried in the right hand. The Bishareen, in com mon with the rest of the Arab tribes in the Eastern Soudan, take great personal pride in their hair. A considerable portion of their lives is spent in its adornment. I doubt whether a Parisian coiffeur would care to take lessons in his metier from these children of the desert, but he would be puzzled to imitate them. The hair is jet black, coarse, wiry, and abundant. It is parted in a horizontal line round the head, the parting passing close above the ears ; the hair above this line is dressed perpendicu larly and looks like a mop. Below, it is plaited and frizzed, and sticks out over the neck and shoulders like the roof of a pent-house, doubtless affording great protection to the back of the neck from the rays of the sun. The whole is stiffened with grease, and when the Bishareen has newly performed his toilet BISHAREEN HAIRDRESSING. 241 and grease is plentiful, his sable locks assume the snowy whiteness of those of Jeames. The sun melts the grease, which drips on to the back and shoulders, forming a deposit by no means savouring of the con ventional spicy odours of ' Araby the blest.' A long skewer or hairpin transfixes this wonderful coiffure, and serves the double purpose of a comb and a weapon used in the chase of the ferce natures, which abound in its immediate vicinity. These people are very strict in the observance of the hours of prayer prescribed by the religion of Islam. They are Moslems of the Malikee rite, like the rest of the Soudanese. They perform their ablu tions by means of sand in lieu of water — a substitute sanctioned, I believe, by the Prophet, in cases where water is not to be had. I never saw them smoke, but they are addicted to snuff, which they carry in round ball-shaped boxes. Their knives are fastened above the left elbow. The Bishareen wemen are comely, barefooted and bareheaded, and clad in a simple cotton gown. The tribe consists of between 100,000 and 150,000 souls. Their sheikh is Bashi Moussa (Moses). They are divided into twenty- two sub-tribes, the most important of which is the El Kelamab. They are governed by numerous sub- sheikhs. The rule is cruel, arbitrary, and oppressive. 242 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. A tribute of about 3,000L per annum is extracted from them. They of course detest the Egyptian Government, and their now open hostility has long been smouldering in secret. They occupy an ill- defined district between the nineteenth and twentieth parallels of latitude in the desert between the Nile and the Red Sea, and pride themselves on the possession of their hygeens, or well-bred swift drome daries. WE ENTER THE HOWLING WILDERNESS. 243 CHAPTER XXVI. UNCOMFORTABLE travelling in the desert. The night Of cloudless climes and starry skies. We encamped for the night at Bir Mahobe, after three hours' march east-north-east from Berber. At this place there is a large well, rivetted with stone. Here we took in a supply of water, for between this point and O-Bak there is not a drop. The next morning we entered the howling wilderness. Our way lay across a barren plain of reddish sand and grit; the pale, sickly, yellowish-grey weeds became more sparse and soon disappeared. These had been preceded by scanty patches of reed-grass, and occa sional thorny mimosa. Now not a blade of vegetation was to be seen. We halted at a point where this plain merges into a bewildering maze of shifting sand-hills, utterly desolate. I was glad to quit my angareb and the back of my camel, as I had been in torture the whole day, and the soft sand formed a R 2 244 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. delightful bed. So thankful was I to be rid of the nauseous jolting that I looked with kindly eyes even on this unlovely spot — unlovely, perhaps, but subhme and impressive as stupendous loneliness and vast space could make it. The sunsets of the African desert are never to be forgotten. I have seen the sun sink to rest in many latitudes and on most meridians, but have never been so awed by the grandeur of the sweet hour as in the silent solitude of the desert. It is more striking than a sunset at sea ; the sense of loneliness is deeper, and the rich golden tones of the undulating plain of sand and the sullen glow and cool violet shadows of the wild gaunt mountains around are awe-inspiring. But who can paint Like Nature ? Can imagination boast, Amid its gay creation, hues like hers ? The next morning we began the passage of the loose sand-dunes above mentioned, the most painful and perilous portion of the 280 miles of desert between Berber and the Red Sea. The camels laboured through the yielding sand, sinking under their feet at every step. On this day the mirage was intensely real. Before me lay a lake, its blue waters laughing in the sun, studded with gem-like islets clad with verdure, and bordered by castles, high turrets, and A DEATH-DEALING MIRAGE. 245 battlements, and again by gleaming villages and smiling hamlets — the whole scene fairy-like in its beauty, and a painful contrast to the arid sand and fierce heat and consuming thirst from which I was suffering. It is in vain that one rubs one's eyes and seeks to disabuse one's self of the illusion. The thing is there, undeniable, apparently solid and tangible ; you know it is mocking you, like an ignis fatuus, but the most accurate knowledge of the physical laws which govern the phenomenon will not brush it away from the retina. There is small wonder that the ignorant and inexperienced should have frequently yielded to the delusion. Life is the price paid for such a mistake. Some years ago a company of soldiers perished from thirst in this region. Disre garding the warning of their guides, the poor fellows, fresh from Egypt, and mad with thirst, broke from the ranks and rushed towards the seeming lakes of transparent water which was presented to their eyes on all sides. They pressed on eagerly towards the ever-receding phantasm, and one by one fell prostrate to leave their bones to bleach on the sand. On another occasion a detachment was sent across the desert to Berber on its way to Khartoum. The soldiers, refusing to be checked by the guides, con sumed all their water when in sight of the mountains 246 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. of El-Bok, confident of their ability to reach the well. The heat was intense. The men became prostrate, and in a few hours died one by one in horrible agony. The Arabs call the mirage bahr esh sheitan — ' the devil's sea.' Later in the day the sky assumed a greyish tint, then a deep yellow, and the sun became darkened and appeared as a blood-red disk. I perceived a cloud of sand rolling up from the west. With a roar it was upon us, and I had to bury my face in my burnous ' to shield it from the cutting particles of sand. The camels floundered about, blind and helpless ; the Arabs howled and cried ' Abd-a-alah ; ' the whole caravan was in a state of confusion. What track there had been previously was obliterated. The drivers had lost their way, and there was the ugly fact of our water being very limited in quantity; and water in the desert means life. Moreover, my angareb slid off, and I was precipitated to the earth, miraculously escaping anything worse than a mere shaking. The distance between a camel's hump and his feet is a respectable one. Afterwards, I was placed for additional security between two camels, slung athwart ; but one was rather smaller than the other— they therefore did not, strictly speaking, keep 1 A scarf. WADING THROUGH MOUNDS OF SAND. 247 step. The result was the most excruciating movement ever experienced, which, combined with the bruises and abrasions from the recent fall, and a frame weakened by dysentery and an African climate, to gether with forebodings as to our probable fate if we did not strike the track again, produced a frame of mind far removed from that of Job's. We rested for the night, or rather a portion of it, in the midst of these unstable sands, and I was devoutly thankful to find my camel treading on firmer ground next day, when we came to a plain of a similar nature to that we had passed previous to wading through the mounds of sand. But at length the track is hit off, and at last O-Bak is reached. This small oasis has aboul; thirty wells. The water is brackish, and barely drinkable. The wells are small shafts sunk in the sand, with wooden curbing. The wells are constantly filling, and new ones being sunk. Before reaching this station we passed many graves of those who had perished in the desert. They were marked by borders of stones — simple memorials of simple lives and lonely deaths. Before reaching O-Bak we passed a strange block of granite, the base of which is worn by the sand, so that it is pear-shaped. This well-known land-mark is known as Aboo-Odfa. Some few miles farther on we passed another mass, weird and solitary. 248 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. We had an hour's sandrwading after leaving O-Bak before entering on the gravelly plain, equally devoid of wood and water, but much less painful to traverse. This plain gradually narrows towards its eastern ex tremity, where it is called Wadi-ed-Deruk. After a halt here we toiled on ; the mountain Jebel Gurrat looming in the distance to our right. Before reaching this point we passed through the gloomy valley of Berud. Here I caught a glimpse of some asses — graceful, agile creatures, with grey bodies and white bellies, that bounded away at our approach. Whether they had been originally tame and had gone like ' wild asses into the wilderness,' or were naturally wild, I know not. These creatures were, with the exception of a few antelopes, many vultures, and some sand grouse near one of the wells, the only four-footed and winged denizens of this dreary desert that I saw on the journey. I beg his pardon ; I met a lonely hare. 'What doth he here?' I thought. Not feeding, certainly ; as he bounded away over heaps of stones, among which it would have puzzled the most hungry puss to have snatched a mouthful. I forgot, too, the beautiful little ringdoves among the mimosa ; sisters and brothers to those of Miss Flo's or Miss Daisy's ; the doves one hears cooing in their aviary on a bright spring morning when residing at an English country- A DELICIOUS DRAUGHT OF MILK. 249 house. The way now pointed east by north through a narrow valley enclosed by low hills strewn with boulders of inky blackness. The scene was wild, grotesque, and forbidding. My Bashi-Bazouks had not received rations for the journey, and I had shared the remnant of provisions which remained between them and myself. The consequence was that I was reduced to a diet of dates, some salt bacon, and two tins of corned beef, and the brackish water we ob tained at O-Bak. The consuming thirst which seized me was augmented by this regime, and I looked forward with intense longing to our arrival at Ariab, where we might obtain good water and the delicious goat's milk. We taxed our camels to the utmost, and after a short rest pushed on through the night. We reached Ariab at six o'clock in the morning. A skin of milk was brought to me by my plucky and faithful Bashi-Bazouks. I say brought; how they got it I cannot say. They said they had not paid for it. I doubt now whether it was a gift ,¦ for these Arabs have a superstition that if they seU milk there will be a curse on them, the cattle will die, and all sorts of plagues will be on them. I did not know this then. Sir Samuel Baker has just told me this. But how I enjoyed that milk no tongue can tell ! Refreshed, I fell asleep after the weary march. I was awakened 250 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. from this fortifying siesta by the gentle chatter of female voices around my tent. The voice of the fairer half of creation has a cachet of its own all the world over, and I could have imagined myself in a London drawing-room, at a five o'clock tea, half awake as I was. The fair daughters of the desert had congre gated around the tent of the stranger out of sheer curiosity and love of the strange — ' only this and nothing more.' Ariab is the prettiest spot in this desert, and, relatively, it may be termed lovely. There are three large well-constructed wells containing an abundant supply of clear water. The valley runs north-east and south-west. It is about five miles long and two wide. There is grazing for camels and goats, and some large acacias overhang the wells. There is an Arab settlement here. Ariab woos the nomad from his wandering instinct. For my part, weak and ill and burnt as I was, I wished I could have stayed here a month. Had I done so, however, I should have to become either a corpse or a Mussulman ; loathsome either choice. From two to four in the afternoon the heat in the desert is overpowering. I found an excel lent recipe, which I do not venture to recommend, however, for other climes. I wrapped myself in a sheet, and got my Dinka servant to pour water over me, and cooled myself, as one does a bottle of cham- GRANITE BOULDERS. 251 pagne, with a wet cloth, though I did not hang myself up in a draught. The sensation was most delicious. I laughed at the torrid heat. The evaporation being so rapid, one at once feels deliciously cool ; as for rheu matism, it is nonplussed. The heat in the afterpart of the day is appalling ; one can hardly breathe. It is a struggle for existence. Every now and then you seem to receive a fierce blast from a furnace. I have not read, in the numerous accounts I have seen, of anyone crossing the desert in July. It is not an ex perience which one would indulge in for the sake of pleasure. All I can say is that the few travellers whose winter experiences of the desert have been recorded will have to try a July transit before they know what the desert really can do in the way of grilling. When we left the oasis of Ariab we pursued a devious course between low rocky hills, which closed in on us until they bounded the narrow valley called Wadi Yumga. The granite boulders were here more bold, and hemmed us in more closely, and for ten miles we threaded our way through them, halting on a bare rocky plain broad and level, with a hard gravelly soil. As we issued from the ravine we passed in twos and threes gentlemen in black with long spears stroll ing along by moonlight. Some of them asked me for 252 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. tobacco, being 'just out ' of that commodity ; but our guide and camel-drivers were thrown into a great state of mind by these apparitions, and on arriving at the usual halting-place on the plain entreated me to go on, urging that the gentlemen we had passed would certainly murder us that night. I could not consider the fact of being asked for tobacco indicating any intention of murder, remembering that one often meets a gentleman in London who is 'just out of tobacco,' so I positively refused to go without my night's rest. The drivers then entreated me to fire off my rifle several times as a caution ; to this waste of ammunition I also demurred. They then requested me to pitch my tent in their middle ; but not liking the effluvia of camels and their drivers, I declined this request also, pitching my tent at least fifty yards distant from the halted caravan. But they gradually encircled my domicile, and sat up all night singing and talking loud — to make the supposed enemy afraid to attack. But they were more or less right in their fears ; these naked men with their spears and shields were on the war path — on towards the fore-doomed Sincat — yet they never attempted to touch me, although I had only two unarmed attendants with me and a few camel-drivers. There is a nobility about the bearing A LITTLE EDEN. 253 of these chivalrous nomads that one respects and admires. Our camping-ground was under a low hill to our right ; we found a well and a spring here, with fairly good water. This spot marks the line of demarcation between the Bishareen and the Hadendowa tribes. The latter are richer and more powerful, they possess cattle as well as camels, and grow dhurra and even cotton in the districts near Kassala. Some people have found a resemblance between them and the Jews, and think they are Jews in fact ; I only find one point in common between them and some Jews I have met — a strong desire to grasp other people's property. We left the low hill and the spring called Roah, and wound among low rocky spurs on our way to Kokreb, fourteen and a half miles from Roah. After a long desert ride, Kokreb, which possesses a delightful gushing spring and some vegetation, seems an Eden. During the whole journey we had been gradually ascending, and had now attained an alti tude of 2,300 feet. Leaving Kokreb we passed over a range of wildly beautiful hills. The tortuous pass debouches into a barren, treeless valley, strewn with fragments of porphyry and trap, in wild but pic turesque confusion. One might well imagine that the Titans had been playing at bowls with the rocks, or 254 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. that his Satanic majesty had given a dance to a select number of friends at this spot. It is a weird-like scene indeed ! We halted at Ahab, or O-Habdl. Beyond this comes a plain, a tract of rocky soil alternating with strips of thin soil, supporting coarse and scanty herbage. The spurs of the low rocky hills to the north jut into the plain, which is thinly studded with stunted mimosa, and uncouth, unearthly-looking dra gon-trees (draccence). Here, too, we came across the Caraib, with its wing-like branches prickly and jagged, a tree strangely in keeping with its savage habitat. Leaving the plain, we entered a narrow valley running north-east and then trending east. This brought us in a couple of hours to the watershed of the Nile and the Red Sea, the highest point on the road, 2,870 feet above the sea. AN UNEXPLAINED PHENOMENON. 255 CHAPTER XXVII. WE PASS THROUGH A WEIRD REGION AND A DESERT STORM, BUT AT LAST CATCH SIGHT OF THE WELCOME SEA. And there in desolation cold The desert serpent dwells alone, Where grass outgrows each mouldering bone, And stones themselves to ruin grown. Buin upon ruin, rout on rout, Confusion worse confounded.— Milton, i. The valley contracts into a defile before reaching Haratri, where we found two wells of good water, and encamped. The rocks here start up like gigantic gaunt grim idols all around. Granite, porphyry, and greenstone crop up along the whole route. A strange and hitherto unexplained phenomenon exists in con nection with the rocks in this desert. Whatever may be their colour, they are uniformly covered with a black coating, which gives them a sombre and for bidding appearance, adding to the solemn impres- siveness of the scene — indescribably grand is this mountain route. Soon after quitting Haratri we entered a weird region, where the huge black boulders 256 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. were strewn around in the wildest confusion. Lateral ravines gave us glimpses of a chaotic labyrinth of rocks of fantastic form piled one upon another. Huge fragments were sown broadcast everywhere. The place might have served for a painter to represent the battle-ground of Milton's angels and the hosts of Lucifer. The whole scene had an ' eerie ' and un earthly aspect. The most daring conceptions of Martin or Gustave Dore fail to give an adequate idea of it, though it recalled to me some of the latter's illustrations to Dante's ' Inferno.' A fearful storm came down upon us as we were traversing this district. It was suddenly on us. The flashes were incessant, and ' the lightning ran along the ground ' and darted among the rocks, illuminating the sinister-looking masses with awful brilliancy. One could realise one of the plagues of Egypt, as the rain came down in sheets ; amid the rush of water and the rolling of the thunder arose the wild cry of the Bishareen, ' Ab-dallah.' Abdallah was a sheikh, who is held in great veneration, and is, in fact, a sort of patron saint who is constantly appealed to during journeys and in times of peril. It is a monotonous, long-drawn cry. I have heard it explained as an invo cation to the spirit of the storm. Eight hours after leaving Haratii we arrived at A SUDDEN STORM. 257 O-Oched, a charming spot, with water thirty inches below the soil. The road then followed shallow ravines bordered by low rocky ridges, debouching on to a wide open plain. This terminates in low sandy hills, between the slopes of which our camels plodded wearily. This valley affords substance to a few stunted trees. We camped by two weUs, very shallow, but affording a supply of fair water. After this came another ravine beyond, which we traversed, the crest of a low spur plentifully sprinkled with low bushes. Descending this, we again wound through a labyrinth of defiles. The road now ran due east in a steady descent, which told me that we were surely approach ing the longed-for goal — the shores of the Red Sea. We halted once more on the edge of a small plain surrounded by low hills. The sunrise over the irregular serrated summits of these hills was exceed ingly beautiful. We left the plain and crossed more rocky spurs, rising into bare hills on our right, inter sected by numerous ravines. After another rest we started for Bir-Handuk. The country bore the same characteristics — bare Khors and ranges of hills, then a plain where the mimosa bushes were more dense than hitherto. We arrived at Bir-Handuk about eleven o'clock in s 258 HICKS PASHA IN THE SOUDAN. the forenoon. I pitched my tent under a tree, about a hundred yards from the wells. A group of Hadendowa Arabs stood around them. There were about thirty of them, and I paid no attention to them at the time. Presently my camel-drivers came running to me and said the Hadendowa refused to let them approach the wells. I sent a tall, stalwart Negro (originally a Dinka slave), still in my service, to tell them I was an officer in the service of the Government. This had no effect. I could have travelled the intervening twelve miles between this place and Suakin, but illness and fatigue are not conducive to patience — one is made irritable — and I determined to have water at any cost ; being annoyed at the impudence of the refusal, I gave my Bashi-Bazouks a revolver each, and asked them if they would stand by me. They responded with alacrity. I again sent my servant to say to the Arabs that I should at once open fire if they did not clear out, pointing my rifle at the same time. After some hesitation they moved off sulkily, and we were able to assuage our thirst. Knowing nothing of the disposition of these tribes, I was unable to account for this hostile demonstration. Four days afterwards Sincat was attacked, and the revolt had begun. This was one of the premonitory drops which ushered in the storm. Bir-Handuk consists of five THE SEA! THE SEA! 253 shallow wells of poor water, at the foot of a low spur of the Waratab range of hills. It was near this spot that the column sent to relieve Sincat were cut to pieces. I was now only twelve miles from Suakin, and eagerly did I look for the first glimpse of the sea, as we toiled under a burning sun, over a plain scattered with black hornblende rocks. At length we passed over the last spur, and from its summit I gazed upon the blue vapour-like curtain of the ocean, shimmering in the heated atmosphere on the horizon. I cried, %aka