diagram: Plan of the Battle of Ferket, 7th June 1896
In April, 1892, Colonel Kitchener succeeded Sir Francis Grenfell as Sirdar of the Egyptian army. In the same year there were signs of increased activity in the Nile Valley, and between Dongola and Suarda some 5,000 fighting men were kept under arms.
In January, 1893, the Dervishes again became aggressive, and 600 of them advanced to cut the railway connecting Sarras and Wady Halfa. The raid failed, owing to the precautions taken by Colonel Wodehouse. The Dervishes, however, managed to surprise and outnumber 120 of the Egyptian Camel Corps, who had been sent to follow up the retreat. The Egyptians fought courageously, but, having lost their two senior officers, Captain Pyne and Major Fuad Effendi, were defeated, and had to retire with a loss of no less than thirty-four men killed and fifteen wounded. The Dervish loss was estimated at more than double that number.
In July of the same year, the Dervishes made a sudden descent on Beris, the southernmost village of the El Khargeh Oasis, to the north-west of Assouan.
In November, the enemy made an attack upon the desert outpost of Murad Wells, but were repulsed.
From this date, with the exception of a raid on a village in the Wady Halfa district in 1895, the Dervishes in the neighbourhood of the Egyptian advanced posts observed a strictly defensive attitude.
The year 1896 brought with it great changes in the entire situation. The reoccupation of the province of Dongola had for some time been in contemplation by the Egyptian Government and its advisers. It was felt that a blow must sooner or later be struck at the power of the Khalifa, which, though it had succeeded in laying waste some of the most fertile provinces abandoned by Egypt, was known to be waning, if not dying, of its own unpopularity; but no one thought that the blow would be struck so soon. In choosing the moment for action, the British Government was influenced to a very large extent by a desire to assist a friendly Power in a position of extreme difficulty. Only a short time before (29th February, 1896) a terrible disaster had happened to the Italian army in Africa,which had been defeated at Adowa with heavy loss by the Abyssinians under Menelik. Driven back in the direction of Massowah, the remains of the Italian forces found it impossible to lend a helping hand to their comrades garrisoned at Kassala, who were threatened by the Dervishes, and in a situation of imminent peril. One object of the British and Egyptian advance which in March, 1896, was determined on, was, by making a diversion in the region of Dongola, to save Kassala, or at all events its garrison. It was not from purely disinterested motives that this step was decided upon. It was obvious that the moment when a large body of the Khalifa's forces was occupied with the Italians would be a favourable one for a movement on Dongola, whereas if Kassala was to fall into the hands of the Dervishes, the latter would be let loose to overrun the Nile Valley. Everything in fact was ripe for the expedition. There were, moreover, political reasons for not delaying it. In the valley of the Upper Nile, the race between the Powers for possession of that part of Africa was beginning to attract attention. The French were extending their influence from the south-west, and the Belgians were sending out expeditions from the south, and there was a general feeling that some corresponding action on the part of Great Britain was desirable, as soon as a favourable opportunity should occur.
Speaking in the House of Commons in March, Mr. Curzon, Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs, stated that, "in view of the reported forward movements in various directions by the Dervishes and the threatened beleaguerment of Kassala, the Government, acting in conjunction with the Government of Egypt and their advisers, and in order to avoid danger to Italy, to Egypt, and to England, and in the interests of Europe, had ordered an advance to Akasheh." He added that the advance might be extended to Dongola, and that the future action of the Government was to be "regulated by considerations not merely military and strategical, but political and financial."
It was decided that the Dongola expedition should consist of about 9,000 Egyptian troops, under the command of the Sirdar. In addition to these, the 1st Battalion of the North Staffordshire Regiment was to be moved from Cairo to Wady Halfa to relieve the Egyptian garrison there, and also to be at hand if required. The route chosen was by rail and river toWady Halfa, and thence by a march along the Nile bank to the front.
The decision of the British Government was arrived at so suddenly that it was not even communicated to the Khedive and his advisers. The news took Cairo by surprise. Without any previous intimation it became known at midnight on the 12th March that Colonel Hunter, who commanded the frontier force at Wady Halfa, had been ordered to advance and occupy Akasheh, that all available troops were to be pushed up the Nile with a view to an advance on Dongola, and that the 1st Battalion of the North Staffordshire Regiment (64th), then quartered in Cairo, was to leave immediately for Wady Halfa.153
Although the news took Cairo by surprise, it was the kind of surprise with which one hears that something long expected and long delayed has at last really come true. For years past the Egyptian army had been steadily trained and prepared for the event which the disaster to the Italian arms in Abyssinia only precipitated.
A few words may here be said concerning the state of the army at this period. Its formation, begun by Sir Evelyn Wood soon after Tel-el-Kebir, had progressed slowly but surely. The men had been gradually disciplined under British officers and accustomed by degrees to meeting the Dervishes in the numerous frontier skirmishes of the past ten years. In 1884-5, Egyptian troops were employed upon the lines of communication of Wolseley's Nile expedition, and some of the Camel Corps were under fire at Kirbekan. Backed by British troops, they fought well at Ginnis, and they crushed Wad-en-Nejumi single-handed at Argin and Toski. At the beginning of 1896 the army numbered 18,000 men. It consisted of sixteen battalions of infantry, each battalion having six companies of from 100 to 120 men each, and about eight squadrons of cavalry, with camel corps, artillery, &c. Of the infantry, ten battalions were composed of fellaheen, taken by conscription, and six of Soudanese blacks (volunteers enlisted for life). The fellaheen battalions numbered from 1 to 4 had British colonels and majors; those numberedfrom 5 to 8 were officered only by natives. The Soudanese Battalions numbered from 9 to 14 (this last only in course of formation) had British officers, whilst the 15th and 16th Battalions, made up of reservists called out for the campaign, were also partly officered by Englishmen. There were in all about eighty British officers, a number increased to 120 by others sent out on special service in the course of the campaign.
A glance must now be taken at the means of transport at the disposal of the Sirdar, and it will be seen that, as in Wolseley's expedition, the provisioning of the above force at a distance of nearly 1,000 miles from its base in Cairo formed one of the chief difficulties to be dealt with.
In March, 1886, the Upper Egypt Railway was open as far as Girgeh, 341 miles above Cairo, but it had been prolonged, for Government purposes only, to Belianeh, eight miles further on. Thence everything had to be carried in steamers and native boats to Assouan. Here men and stores had to be unloaded and conveyed overland by the eight-mile railway to Shellal, just above the First Cataract, where they were again shipped and taken on to Wady Halfa. From this last place to Sarras, a distance of thirty miles, a railway existed when the campaign began, and this line was continued as quickly as possible in the rear of the army as it advanced. It may here be observed that the rapid construction of this railway, under the direction of Nicour Bey and Captain Girouard, of the Royal Engineers, was not the least notable feature of the campaign. From the rail-head to the front stores had to be carried by convoys of camels and mules, aided on the less broken parts of the river by relief boats, as soon as the rising Nile had allowed them to be dragged up the cataract by steamers. The navigation of the Nile between Wady Halfa and Dongola is not easy, the broken water of the Second Cataract extending from Wady Halfa almost to Sarras, and at Hannek, 100 miles further on, the Third Cataract again obstructs the navigation.
On the 20th March, Mr. Morley moved a vote of censure of the House of Commons on the Government in connection with the Dongola expedition, but on a division the motion was negatived by 288 votes against 143.
There was an incident in connection with the expedition which is of sufficient importance to deserve notice.
A few days after the expedition was decided on, the Egyptian Government, on the 19th March, applied to the Commissioners of the Public Debt to advance towards the expenses the sum of £500,000, to be taken from what is known as the "Reserve Fund." This fund was created pursuant to the Khedivial decree of 12th July, 1888, under which the financial arrangements made by "The London Convention" of 1885, already referred to in a former chapter, were once more modified. The changes made comprised the suspension of the Sinking Fund of the Debt, and the application of the money to form a reserve fund, to meet unforeseen contingencies. One of these was declared to be "extraordinary expenses incurred with the previous sanction of the Commission of the Debt."
Four out of the six Commissioners agreed in considering the Dongola expedition as coming under the above category, and advanced the money. The French and Russian Commissioners dissented. This led to a lawsuit in the Mixed Tribunal of Cairo, which later on, viz., on the 9th June, ordered the Government to refund the money with interest. The judgment being confirmed on appeal on the 2nd December, 1896, the Khedive's advisers might have found themselves in a position of some difficulty had not Lord Cromer vigorously taken the matter in hand, and induced the British Government to lend the sum which had to be refunded. The amount due under the judgment, £515,600, was repaid to the "Caisse" on the 8th December, and the Khedive's Ministers expressed their lively gratitude. This was still further earned when later on the British Government released their claim to be repaid the sum advanced.
On 21st March the Sirdar, with Major Wingate and Slatin Pasha, and the 1st Battalion of the North Staffordshire Regiment, 917 strong, left Cairo for Assouan and Wady Halfa. At the same time the various Egyptian battalions were hurried up the river with all possible despatch.
As usual the enterprising firm of Messrs. Thomas Cook & Son came in for the principal part of the river transport work. All their steamers, except those engaged in the postal service, were requisitioned by the Egyptian Government, and, deprived of their handsome fittings and luxurious accommodation, now figured as troopships between Belianeh and Assouan. Between the 21st and 26th March, these steamers shipped from the formerplace no less than 4,500 men, besides 750 animals and an enormous quantity of stores. A detachment of the Connaught Rangers was stationed at Belianch in charge of the store depôt established there.
It should be mentioned that the 9th Soudanese Battalion, forming part of the Souakim garrison, marched from Kosseir, on the Red Sea, to Keneh, on the Nile, following the route across the desert taken by General Baird and his army in 1801.
Meanwhile Colonel Hunter with his frontier force moved on to Akasheh, which for some time past had been the advanced post of the Dervishes, and occupied it without opposition.
The Egyptian troops now concentrated as rapidly as possible at the various posts between Wady Halfa and Akasheh, the Staffordshire Regiment being left to garrison the former place.
The railway was now being pushed forward, and on 24th May it was completed to a point three miles beyond Ambigol, sixty-three miles south of Wady Halfa.
To guard against raids on either flank in the proposed further advance, the west bank of the Nile was patrolled by native irregulars, and the important post of Murad Wells had its garrison of Ababdeh "friendlies" strengthened by some two or three companies from one of the Egyptian battalions.
The post of Murad Wells, situated about half-way between Korosko and Abu Hamid, was by far the most important of the desert posts. No Dervish descent upon the east bank of the river was possible unless these wells had been first secured; consequently there had been repeated struggles for their possession. Their guardianship had at the time now referred to been intrusted to the Ababdeh Arabs in the pay of the Government. The last attack on the wells was that made by the Dervishes as lately as November, 1893, but which was repulsed with severe loss. The chief of the tribe, Saleh Bey, who was in command of the defending force, lost his life on this occasion, but was succeeded by his elder brother, Ahmed Bey, an equally capable leader.
On the news of Hunter's advance to Akasheh, a younger brother, Abd-el-Azim, on the 11th April made a bold reconnaissance to the south. Crossing the desert with a party of his Ababdehs, he struck the Nile about forty miles south of AbuHamid, and then continuing some eighty miles further along the river, he informed the people of the Egyptian advance. They received the news everywhere with the greatest delight, and expressed their joy at the prospect of being delivered from the Khalifa's reign of terror. Abd-el-Azim was able to obtain some useful information of the Dervish movements. At Abu Hamid there were only about 400 fighting men, but Berber was held by 6,000 of the Jehadia, Jaalin and Baggara tribes.
On the 1st of May the first fight of the season came off in the neighbourhood of Akasheh. About noon 240 of the Egyptian cavalry, under Major Burn Murdoch, when some four miles from Akasheh, suddenly came across 300 mounted Baggara, with a further force of about 1,000 men on foot, drawn up behind them. The odds being too great, the cavalry was ordered to retire. Seeing this movement, the Dervish horsemen, advancing amid a cloud of dust, charged down upon the rear troop just at the moment that the cavalry had entered a narrow defile. Several of the men were speared and stabbed in the back before the main body had time to wheel and in their turn charge the assailants. This they quickly did in dashing style, and then ensued a hand-to-hand fight which lasted about twenty minutes, at the end of which the Dervishes wheeled about and galloped off to the rear of the spearmen on foot. The ground not admitting of another charge, the cavalry then dismounted and opened fire on the enemy. This was kept up till at 3 p.m., just as the 11th Soudanese Battalion was arriving in support, the Dervishes retired, to the great satisfaction of the small Egyptian force, which with jaded horses, and suffering intensely from want of water, had been fighting continuously for three hours under a burning sun.
The cavalry had two killed and ten wounded, against eighteen killed and eighty wounded on the enemy's side.
On the 2nd June the arrival of the 10th Soudanese Battalion at Akasheh completed the concentration necessary for the further advance.
From information obtained by the Intelligence Department it was ascertained that the Dervish force, though inferior in number to that of the Egyptians, was composed of good fighting material, Baggara, Jaalins, and Jehadias, and was led by the well-knownEmir Hamuda. Their total number was estimated at 3,000.
On the evening of the 6th the Egyptian troops commenced the advance, quitting Akasheh on the march to Ferket, on the east bank, sixteen miles distant. The Sirdar, who had shortly before reached the front, was in command. The force was divided into two parts, which may be called the River and the Desert Columns.
The River Column, under the command of Colonel Hunter, consisted of infantry and artillery. The infantry was divided into three brigades of three battalions each; the artillery was composed of two field batteries and two Maxims, the latter worked by thirty men of the Connaught Rangers.
The Desert Column, commanded by Major Burn Murdoch, consisted of seven squadrons of cavalry, the Camel Corps, one infantry battalion mounted on camels, one battery of Horse Artillery, and two Maxim guns. The total force of the two columns was not less than 9,100 men.
The Sirdar's plan for the attack was for the River Column to proceed along the Nile bank, and the Desert Column to make a detour to the east, so timed that both columns should reach Ferket at dawn, the former attacking from the north whilst the latter cut off the Dervish retreat east and south. On the west of their position was the Nile, the further bank of which was guarded by Egyptian irregulars, so as to prevent the possibility of escape on that side. Thus the Dervishes were to be completely hemmed in on every side.
The River Column bivouacked at 11 p.m. at a place distant only about four miles from the enemy, every precaution being taken to prevent news of the advance reaching the Dervish force. There were no bugle calls, no lights, and no firing.
At 12.15 on the morning of the 7th June the march was resumed, the 1st Brigade taking the ground nearest the river, the 2nd being on the left, and the 3rd in the rear.
Meanwhile the Desert Column was skilfully guided in the darkness across the desert until it reached the point south of Ferket where it had been arranged that it should take up its position.
The enemy became aware of the approach of the two columns almost simultaneously, saw that all prospect of retreat was cut off,and hurriedly prepared for action. Their formation was largely governed by the position of their camps. Their left wing, or wing next the river, occupied the huts of the Jaalin camp, and was thrown forward beyond the centre, which was opposite the Baggara camp; the right wing again was slightly in the rear of the centre.
The engagement began by the Dervishes opening fire at 5 a.m. from an outpost on the Jebel Ferkeh, a mountain on the north side of the village close down by the river under which the River Column had to pass.
The 2nd Brigade brought a heavy fire to bear upon the hill, and quickly clearing it, the march continued. As the column reached the more open ground beyond Jebel Ferkeh, the troops opened out, and the brigades on the right and left got into fighting formation, with two battalions thrown forward and one in reserve. The 1st Brigade then moved towards the river to attack the enemy's left wing, whilst the 2nd Brigade advanced on the right wing near the Jaalin camp; the 3rd Brigade coming up from the rear to fill the intervening gap.
The entire force then steadily advanced, firing as they went, whilst the Desert Column shelled the enemy from the south and rear. The Dervishes fought with the courage of despair, and frequently charged the Egyptian troops. Small bodies of the enemy continued fighting in the huts forming the different camps long after any organized resistance had ceased to be possible, and obstinately refusing quarter. Hut after hut had to be cleared at the point of the bayonet amid vigorous hand-to-hand fighting, and in one hut alone eighty Baggara corpses were subsequently found.
Position after position was taken, and an utter rout ensued. Such of the Dervishes as survived the attack of the River Column fled to the south, only to find their retreat cut off by the Desert Column, which by this time had advanced on the flank of the enemy, who were thus effectually caught as intended. Many of their mounted men, finding themselves headed off by the cavalry, galloped back to die in front of the lines of infantry.
The footmen, too, were seen hurrying to and fro seeking a way through the encircling Egyptian forces. Such of them as succeeded were closely pursued by the cavalry, andat least 150 were thus slaughtered within a few miles of Ferket.
The enemy's losses were estimated at 1,000 killed and wounded, and over 500 were taken prisoners. The Egyptian loss, on the other hand, was limited to twenty men killed and eighty wounded. The Dervish Emir in command was Osman Azrak, who had lately superseded Hamuda; and the former and at least forty other emirs were among the slain.
The whole fight was but a short affair, the first shot being fired at 5 a.m., and two hours later the whole thing was over.
Burn Murdoch, with the Desert Column, continued to follow up the pursuit as far as Suarda, which he occupied the next morning.
The effect of the engagement at Ferket was that fifty miles of the Nile Valley were cleared of the Dervishes; that the only organized army of the Khalifa near the frontier was destroyed; and that Suarda, which had for many years been the starting-place for raids on the Nile villages, became the advanced post of the Sirdar's army.
After the destruction of the Dervish force at Ferket and the occupation of Suarda, no further advance was undertaken for a period of three months. There was, however, plenty of hard work to do, and rarely has an army toiled through a long, hot summer in the way that the Sirdar's troops worked in those trying months of June, July, and August. In the year 1896, the railway had to be pushed on, stores had to be concentrated at the front, and steamers to be dragged up the cataracts. In addition to this, there was a severe cholera epidemic to be fought and overcome.
The advance post of Suarda was fortified and strongly held by the 2nd Infantry Brigade, with some artillery. The cavalry and Camel Corps made reconnaissances further south, but no additional posts were occupied during the summer.
One particularly successful expedition was made. It had been ascertained that the Emir Osman Azrak, with a body of Dervish cavalry, had come north to Kidden, a village near the Kaibar Cataract, with the intention of collecting the entire male population in the district, and driving them south to Dongola to assist in the defence of that place. On June the 17th, two squadrons of Egyptian cavalry and a company of the camel corps, under Captain Mahon, arrived; and the Dervishes, though greatly superior in numbers, fled without fighting. Eleven boats loaded with grain were captured, and the unfortunate inhabitants of the village were enabled to make their escape to the Egyptian lines north of Suarda.
From these refugees a good deal of information was obtained as to what the Dervishes were doing. The news of the defeat at Ferket had been received in Dongola with consternation. Wad-el-Bishara, the governor, sent the intelligence on to the Khalifa, asking at the same time for large reinforcements, if the town of Dongola was to be defended. In the meantime, he made preparations for defence, fortifying the place, enrolling all the able-bodied men in the province, and calling in from the desert such of the Bedouins as were friendly to the cause.
All this while the work of pushing forward supplies was rapidly continued. The field telegraph, laid for the most part in the desert sand, followed closely upon the heels of the army.
The railway was steadily pushed on by Captain Girouard, R.E., until it reached Kosheh (the scene of the engagement of 30th December, 1885), whither on July 5th the head-quarters camp had been moved for sanitary reasons.
During all this period the expedition was pursued by persistent ill fortune. The rise of the Nile was unusually late, and consequently the dragging of the gunboats over the Second Cataract was delayed. Heavy rain storms, most unusual in this part of the Soudan, occurred, and the last, on August the 25th, swept away part of the line near Sarras.
By far the worst visitation of all was the cholera. The disease was imported into Egypt in October, 1895, but made only little way during the winter. In the spring of 1896 it began to increase,and in the second week of June reached the first military post at Assouan. Here it was quickly stamped out, but was taken to Korosko by the men of the 5th Battalion, and shortly after appeared at Wady Halfa. Here the epidemic was very severe, and difficult to deal with, for Halfa could not be isolated, as all the troops and stores had to pass through it, and the epidemic followed them until it reached Kosheh. As soon as the cholera appeared at Wady Halfa the North Staffordshire Regiment was moved into camp at Gemai, six miles further off in the desert, but nevertheless many cases occurred among the men. The epidemic first reached Kosheh on July the 15th. The camp was at once moved back 2,000 yards into the desert, and the most stringent precautions were taken to insure the purity of the water supply, as well as to keep the men from bathing or washing clothes in the river.
With these precautions, the disease, which was of a very rapid and fatal type, was at last stamped out, but not until 235 Egyptian soldiers in all had fallen victims. Amongst others were four British officers and two English engineers, who had been sent to supervise the putting together of a new gunboat.
At the end of August, the concentration of the troops further south was begun, and begun badly. The 1st Brigade was advanced from Suarda, where it had been stationed, to Delligo, a distance of forty-five miles. To avoid a bend of the river the men were marched as far as Absarat, that is about half of the way straight across the desert. The heat was most oppressive, a scorching sand storm raged part of the time, and the men in heavy marching order, carrying two days' rations and 100 rounds of ammunition, were unaccompanied by water camels, but had to trust to two depôts which had been formed on the road. Out of 3,000 men no less than 1,700 fell out, and ten died and were buried, during this disastrous march, undertaken without any adequate motive.
On the 15th September the 1st Battalion of the North Staffordshire Regiment, which had moved up from Gemai, arrived, and the advance really began. Every available soldier being wanted, but small garrisons were left upon the line of communication. Kosheh, now the railway terminus, as the most important place, was guarded by the 6th Battalion, but the other posts northwards had only a few men each. The expeditionary force consisted ofthe North Staffordshire, the three brigades which fought at Ferket, and a fourth brigade, composed also of three Egyptian battalions.
With the artillery, Camel Corps, and infantry the total force amounted to nearly 15,000 men.
On the 14th the troops marched into Fereig, the North Staffordshires being conveyed by steamer. On the 17th the whole force moved on to Bargi, about ten miles further south, and on the 18th to a spot on the river bank opposite the island of Imbos. On the 19th the army started before daybreak to attack the Dervishes, who were reported to be strongly intrenched at Kermeh, but Wad-el-Bishara, who was in command, disappointed the Sirdar by moving the whole Dervish force across to the west bank during the previous night, and was now holding the village of Hafir. Then at 6.30 a.m. commenced the little battle of Hafir, between the Egyptian artillery and gunboats and the Dervishes on the left bank. A long line of shelter trenches, with loopholed mud walls, ran along the river front of the position, and here five small guns, which had been captured at Khartoum, were mounted. These were served by ex-gunners of the Egyptian army. The north and south sides of the position were protected by deep morasses, and on the left lay moored against the western bank a small gunboat built by Gordon at Khartoum, and some twenty-five large sailing vessels laden with grain. The engagement was opened at 6.30 a.m. by the Egyptian artillery, which was replied to by the Dervish guns and riflemen, but little damage was done on either side.
Half an hour later, Commander Colville, R.N., arrived with his steamboat flotilla, consisting of his flagship, theTamaai, theAbu Klea, and theMetammeh.
The steamers then began to attack the forts, steaming up until they got abreast of them, pouring in their fire, and then dropping down stream until they were out of range.
The Dervish fire was wonderfully accurate, the ships being struck again and again by the shells while the rifle bullets pierced all the woodwork. One shell actually entered the magazine of theAbu Klea, but fortunately did not explode. There were several casualties. Two men were killed, and Captain Colville and twelve men wounded. This engagement lasted forthree hours, and though the practice made by the gunboats was good, and the enemy must have lost heavily, still their fire was not silenced.
About 1,200 yards from the enemy's position was a large island, called Artaghasi, joined by a swampy isthmus to the mainland, now that the Nile was falling. Three batteries of artillery and the Maxim battery were sent to take up a position on the island, just opposite the Dervishes. The guns were promptly brought into action, and about an hour later the Dervish fire was silenced. Nevertheless shots were fired intermittently during the afternoon and through the night, especially in the neighbourhood of the grain boats which the Dervishes were trying to discharge.
Meanwhile the steamers, delivering their parting shots as they passed the forts, went on to Dongola, which they reached before sunset.
Thus ended the fighting for the day. The casualties on the Anglo-Egyptian side, as already stated, were but trifling; those of the enemy, though reported as heavy, were never exactly ascertained. One writer estimates them at 200.
On the morning of the next day, the 20th, it became evident that the Dervishes had evacuated Hafir. Some of the inhabitants came out and waved a welcome to the Egyptians, while others brought all the boats across to the east bank, where they were immediately taken possession of. It was found that Bishara, misled by false information, had evacuated Hafir at three in the morning, and marched with all his force to Dongola to oppose the crossing which he had been led to expect would take place there. The Sirdar, however, learning this, ordered that the river should be crossed at once at Hafir, and the movement was begun that very day.
It was no small undertaking to throw such a large force across a river a mile and a half wide, with only a few gunboats and sailing craft, and it is hardly surprising that the army was not ready to resume its march upon Dongola until the evening of the following day. In the meanwhile, Colville's gunboats returned, having thrown a few shells into Dongola, and captured several more boat loads of grain.
On the evening of September the 21st, the Anglo-Egyptian force marched twelve miles further south, and bivouacked on theriver bank nearly opposite the island of Argo. On this day, too, theAbu Kleawas sent on ahead to watch Dongola, where on the following day she was joined by theTamaaiandMetammeh.
Early in the morning of the 22nd, the force marched a few miles on to Zowerat and rested there.
At 4.30 a.m. on the 23rd, lighted by a brilliant moon, the Anglo-Egyptian force moved on Dongola. The gunboatZafrarrived from the north, and was at once sent on to join Colville's command. The order of march was as follows:—The 1st Brigade was on the left near the river; on their right was the 3rd Brigade. Next came the artillery, Maxims, and North Staffordshire. On the right, next the artillery, was the 2nd Brigade with the Camel Corps, Horse Artillery, and cavalry on the extreme right, away in the desert. The 4th Brigade formed the rear guard. The force presented a front two miles in length. At seven o'clock the Dervishes came in sight, and the Egyptians briskly advanced to meet them. The former, however, would not fight. Time after time they halted in battle array as if to attack, but each time seeing the odds were so hopelessly against them, they suddenly retreated. In the distance, the sound of guns from Colville's steamers was heard; but the troops on shore never got a chance of a shot. At 9.30 the force was abreast of the Dervish camp to the north of the town of Dongola, where they saw the Egyptian flag waving over the old Mudirieh and learned that the blacks garrisoning the place had surrendered to the steamers. Then it was seen that there could be no fight, and that all that remained to be done was to pursue the Baggaras, Jaalins, and others now in full retreat. This task was thereupon taken in hand by the cavalry, Camel Corps, and Horse Artillery, whilst the remainder of the force, skirting a morass which lay between the town and the western desert, marched on, till at 11 a.m. they turned the southern end of the swamp and entered Dongola.
The inhabitants crowded amongst the troops, seizing and kissing the hands of the soldiers and displaying the utmost joy at being delivered from the oppression of the Baggara.
The important part taken by the gunboats in the capture of Dongola may be stated in a few words. They steamed up abreast of the town in the early morning, the rearmost steamerbeing only a little ahead of the infantry advance. They then opened fire on the defences on the river bank, but there was no effective reply. They also kept up a steady fire on the Dervish camp in the desert, already referred to, and afterwards on the Baggara Arabs, now retiring before the advancing infantry. Again there was no reply. At 9.30 the blacks garrisoning Dongola hoisted the white flag, and the cannonade ceased. Commander Colville then landed with a hundred Soudanese soldiers and hoisted the Egyptian flag.
The close pursuit by the mounted troops which ensued compelled the Dervishes to abandon a large portion of their black foot-soldiers, who were only too glad to remain. Indeed, it was one of the most satisfactory features of the day's work that, owing to the absence of fighting by the force on shore, only a few lost their lives. Those were of the unfortunate native population, who are always placed in the front ranks of the Dervishes.
The Baggara, however, offered some resistance to the pursuit, and made several charges whilst endeavouring to cover the retreat of the main body. Some 900 prisoners, in all, were captured. These were shortly afterwards converted into a black battalion and added to the Sirdar's forces.
On the night of the 24th, the Anglo-Egyptian force bivouacked in and around Dongola, or rather the ruins of that once flourishing town. The place was now practically deserted, and in the streets not a soul was to be seen. Everywhere was ruin and desolation.
On the 26th, there being no more work for the North Staffordshires to do, and the regiment suffering a good deal from sickness, it was sent back to Cairo.154
As a consequence of the fall of Dongola every Dervish fled for his life from the province. The mounted men made off across the desert direct to Omdurman, and the foot-soldiers took the Nile route to Berber, always being careful to keep out of range of the gunboats, which were prevented by the Fourth Cataract from pursuing them beyond Merawi.
Preceded by the gunboats, the main body of the expedition after the capture of Dongola proceeded southwards, leaving detachments behind to guard the line of communication. Debbeh, Korti, and Merawi were successively seized and occupied.
The Sirdar also went south to inspect the different positions and receive the submissions of the most important sheikhs, after which he returned to Cairo, leaving his forces stationed at the three strategic posts above mentioned.
On Kitchener's departure the province was placed under military law, Major-General Hunter, who had fixed his head-quarters at Merawi, being in command.
Courts of justice and a police force were established in the province of Dongola, the rebuilding of the town was begun, and the railway was continued along the Nile to Kermeh, forty miles to the north, and which now became the southern terminus. The former inhabitants were invited to return to their lands, and cultivation was gradually resumed.
The principal difficulty in the way of progress was the lack of population, which since 1885 had fallen off from 75,000 to 56,000, and of these a large proportion consisted of women and children. The number of cattle had also diminished from 36,000 to less than 12,000 in the same period.
Whilst Dongola was being put in order, the Khalifa, who expected that the capture of that province would be followed by a further advance, hastily took steps to fortify Omdurman, where he gathered all his available warriors, and awaited events.
This was the situation at the end of 1896.
We now arrive at the year 1897, when the intended reconquest of the Soudan, by the aid of British money and arms, was announced in the House of Commons. This took place on the 5th February, when the "Dongola Expedition vote" of £798,802 was moved by the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Sir Michael Hicks-Beach declared on this occasion 'that, since the Dongola Expedition was undertaken, the BritishGovernment had never concealed, either from Parliament or the country, that, in their view, there should be a further advance in the same direction; that Egypt could never be held to be permanently secured so long as a hostile Power was in occupation of the Nile Valley up to Khartoum; and that England, having compelled the Egyptian Government to abandon the Soudan, had incurred towards its inhabitants responsibilities for the fulfilment of which the moment had arrived now that the baleful rule of the Khalifa was crumbling to decay.'
The Sirdar's policy of advancing gradually and consolidating at every step the authority of the Egyptian Government continued to be pursued in 1897.
The work of getting up supplies for the large force at the front occupied the first few months of the year, and this was a task of no small magnitude, considering that the country contained little or no produce, and that everything required had to be forwarded from the base in Cairo.
The necessity for the construction of a new railway for military purposes from Wady Halfa across the desert viâ Murad Wells to Abu Hamid now impressed itself on the Sirdar's mind. Such a line was almost indispensable in the event of operations being extended in the direction of Berber and Omdurman. The existing line to Kermeh had served its purpose in bringing up supplies and otherwise until the time of the capture of Dongola, but its further extension would have to be made through a difficult country, and at a great sacrifice of time and money. It was therefore determined to discard it so far as the expedition was concerned.
The immense advantage of making a short cut across the eastern desert instead of following the tortuous windings of the Nile Valley will be evident to any one who studies the map and notes the respective positions of Wady Halfa, Kermeh, and Abu Hamid. The saving in distance is about 330 miles.
Influenced by these considerations, the authorities sanctioned the new line, and the materials having been got together at Wady Halfa, the work was promptly taken in hand.
Once commenced, the line, laid for the greater part on the desert sand by working parties from Wady Halfa, progressed with almost inconceivable rapidity, under the able direction of Captain Girouard. The country over which the railwaypassed consisted mostly of undulating desert. There were no bridges, and but few cuttings, and the average rate of progress was a mile and a half a day.
Although it was known that there was a Dervish force at Abu Hamid, no opposition was encountered from it.
In order to present the history of events in chronological order, it is here necessary to make a slight digression and refer to what happened about this period in another part of the Soudan.
In the month of June the Khalifa was compelled to detach a portion of his army from Omdurman, and send it, under the orders of his cousin and principal emir Mahmoud, to suppress a revolt of the Jaalin Arabs at Metammeh. This tribe, which had long been kept under the Khalifa's rule by the terrorism of the Baggara, was anxious to join hands with the Egyptians, and now struck for freedom. They fortified Metammeh, and courageously awaited Mahmoud's attack. On the 1st July it came, and, hemmed in and outnumbered by the Dervish horde, the brave Jaalins, after three days' resistance, in which all their ammunition was exhausted, were utterly routed. Metammeh was captured and burnt, and the country round devastated by the victors, who killed men, women and children indiscriminately.
The Jaalins had exasperated their foes by their determined resistance, and when the town was taken no less than 2,000 of its defenders were massacred. The prisoners were drawn up in line and treated thus: the first was beheaded, the second had his right hand cut off, the third his feet, and so on in succession until they had all been-dealt with. Their chief, Abdullah Wad Sud, the head of the Jaalin tribe, was taken a prisoner to Omdurman, and walled in in such a position that he could neither stand nor sit, and was thus left to die of hunger and thirst.
Such of the Jaalins as escaped declared their allegiance to the Khedive, and, being supplied with firearms, and subsidized, joined the ranks of the "friendlies" and became useful allies. One of their first acts, when they had time to reorganize a little, was to seize and hold Gakdul Wells, a move which not only covered the Egyptian right on the subsequent advance, but also saved the province of Dongola from the danger of surprise by Dervish raiders.
Towards the end of July the desert railway line had advanced as far as it was deemed prudent to go whilst Abu Hamid remained in the enemy's possession, and it was determined to take the place by means of troops co-operating from what may be considered the opposite direction, viz., Merawi.
On the 29th July, General Hunter, with four battalions of Soudanese infantry and some artillery,155started from Merawi for Abu Hamid.
Following the route taken by the River Column under General Earle in 1885, and passing the battlefield of Kirbekan, Hunter arrived on the night of the 6th August within a few miles of Abu Hamid. The march, which covered 132 miles, made in the hottest time of the year, was accomplished in eight days.
At daylight on the 7th, the troops moved up to attack the enemy, who occupied an intrenched position in front of and within the village. Their centre was a rectangular mud-walled inclosure, extending over six acres, and in this were contained the wells, military stores, and quarters for the soldiers. The mud huts of the village were connected by walls, and these, as well as the walls of the inclosure, were loopholed for musketry. The whole position was held by about 1,500 men, one-third of whom were armed with rifles, and 150 were mounted.
The infantry deployed for the attack, and, as soon as the movement was completed, advanced in line covered by the fire of the artillery on their right. Some high ground overlooking the village was first carried with but little resistance. When the troops had approached within 300 yards of the walls they were met by a furious fusillade, and many of the Egyptians fell. The rest rushed onwards, and a stubborn house-to-house fight, in which several lives were lost, ensued. In some cases so determined was the resistance that the artillery were obliged to advance before a position could be carried. Eventually, when the enemy's mounted men had lost about half their number, the residue fled. They were followed by about 100 of the foot-soldiers, all that was left of the garrison, and Abu Hamid wasthen taken and occupied. Many prisoners were captured, including the Dervish leader, Mohammed Zein.
The serious nature of the fighting may be gathered from the fact that on the Egyptian side there were twenty-three killed and sixty-four wounded. Amongst the killed were two English officers: Major Sidney and Lieutenant FitzClarence. The Dervish loss must have been much heavier, quite four-fifths of the garrison being either killed or taken prisoners.
The fugitives continued their flight to Omdurman, spreading as they went the news of the defeat.156
Abu Hamid having fallen, every effort was now made to hurry up the rest of the army from Merawi, Debbeh, and Dongola with a view to an advance upon Berber, the next Dervish stronghold on the river.
The Nile having by this time risen sufficiently, the gunboats with further troops were enabled to pass the Fourth Cataract, and by the 29th August, with the exception of one which came to grief in the cataract, arrived at Abu Hamid. The sailing boats with more men and stores were also successfully hauled through, and reached Abu Hamid shortly after.
Before, however, they had time to arrive, intelligence was received to the effect that the Dervishes were evacuating Berber, the next stronghold on the river. The importance of this move was at once realized, and a party of "friendlies," under Ahmed Bey Khalifa, were sent on ahead of General Hunter's troops to seize the place. Meeting with no resistance, the "friendlies" entered Berber, where on the 6th September Ahmed was joined by the gunboat flotilla. Hunter, with the greater part of his army, entered Berber on the 13th. Berber, formerly a large and prosperous town and an important centre of trade, but now sacked and destroyed, was represented by a big Dervish village, built on a site some miles north of the original place, and some two miles from the river.
On the day that Ahmed Bey reached Berber, two of the gunboats went on to Ed Damer, a few miles beyond the junction of the river Atbara with the Nile. Here they exchanged some shots with the Dervish force which had retreated from Berber, and they also succeeded in capturing several boat-loads of grain.
Ed Damer, now become the Egyptian advanced post, was occupied by a half battalion of infantry; a fort was erected, and other steps were taken for putting the place in a state of defence.157
Whilst Hunter was making his advance upon Abu Hamid and Berber, the irrepressible Osman Digna, of Souakim notoriety, had collected a force of 5,000 men, besides a large following of women and children, at a spot called Adarama, on the bank of the Atbara river, about ninety miles above Ed Damer. Here Hunter proposed to attack him, but, owing to delays in bringing forward transport and supplies from Abu Hamid, he was not ready to advance till the 23rd of October. On this date, taking with him 400 of the 11th Soudanese, some detachments of the Camel Corps, and two guns, Hunter started. Marching by the Atbara river, the force reached Adarama on the 29th of October, only to find, to their disappointment, that Osman, hearing of the approach of the Egyptian troops, had evacuated that place only two days before, and crossing the river at Guidi, was now with his fighting men and followers making for Abu Deleh, 100 miles in the desert between Omdurman and Kassala.
Adarama was completely deserted, and on the 2nd November, after having set fire to the village, the expedition returned to Berber.
Osman Digna's retreat left the Eastern Soudan clear of Dervishes; and the Souakim and Berber route, after being so many years closed to trade, was now reopened. Amongst the first persons to take advantage of the reopening of the road was a batch of newspaper correspondents, who, being given to understand that no advance on Omdurman was likely to take place until the following year, chose that route for returning to Cairo. They met with no difficulty on the way, and reportedthat plenty of water was obtainable all along the route by merely improving the existing wells or digging new ones.158
The inaction of the Mahdist forces about this time is attributed to the differences which existed between the principal Dervish leaders. Mahmoud with 10,000 men was known to be in the neighbourhood of Metammeh, and, young, energetic, and full of ardour, was anxious to advance and meet the invaders. But between Mahmoud and Osman Digna, now at Abu Deleh, there was a feud on a question of women taken from Osman's tribe. Consequently Osman, like another Achilles, sulked in his tents and refused to co-operate in any way with Mahmoud. The Khalifa at Omdurman, under the impression that the attack on his capital could not be much longer delayed, refused to weaken his forces by sending either men or supplies to enable Mahmoud to make a move, an operation of which, by the way, he strongly disapproved. Mahmoud, not feeling strong enough to risk an attack unaided, was thus constrained to remain on the defensive.
On the 15th October, three of the gunboats were sent, under Commander Keppel, to reconnoitre Mahmoud's position. Passing Shendy, on the east bank, they steamed on until they sighted Metammeh (the scene of the fight with Stewart's column in 1885), on the opposite bank. The town was found to be protected by seven circular mud forts, placed at intervals along the river for a distance of one and a half miles. The gunboats cleared for action, and, with the Egyptian flag flying, formed in line of battle in true naval style. As they advanced, keeping always on the eastern or opposite shore, Baggara horsemen were seen galloping from fort to fort as if to stimulate the defenders. As the steamers approached they opened fire simultaneously on the two nearest forts at a range of 4,000 yards, making excellent practice with their quick-firing twelve and six-pounder guns. The Maxims were directed on the horsemen, and so effectively that in a few minutes they disappeared from the scene of action. The forts, mounting each one obsolete brass cannon, returned the fire, but their shell nearly always fell short. Two or three, however, struck the gunboats, and one man was mortally wounded.
After bombarding at long range for an hour, the flotilla moved up abreast of the position, and poured shell and shrapnel into any place where the enemy was supposed to be. The missiles burst in all directions, with the effect of causing the return fire to slacken perceptibly. As the gunboats passed the forts it was discovered that the embrasures existed only on the northern front, so that when once in the rear of the work no guns could be brought to bear.
Whilst steaming along the east bank and keeping a look-out for the enemy a party of riflemen opened fire on the vessels at a range of 100 yards. The bullets rattled against the sides of the gunboats, but no one was struck, and a few rounds from the Maxims speedily dispersed the sharpshooters, who fled amongst the scrub, leaving their dead behind them. The vessels then steamed past the town, firing as opportunities offered. They then turned and retraced their course down stream, shelling as they went till 2.30 p.m., when all firing ceased. The flotilla then dropped down to an island half a dozen miles to the north of Metammeh and made fast for the night.
On the morning of the 17th, the reconnaissance was resumed. During the night two additional guns had been mounted in the forts, making the total now nine instead of seven. The manœuvres of the previous day were repeated, and after a few hours' shelling, the reconnaissance being completed, the gunboats proceeded to withdraw down the river. This being observed from the forts, they redoubled their efforts, and fired shell after shell at the retiring vessels, keeping it up long after they were out of range. At the same time a vast horde of Dervish warriors, probably Mahmoud's entire force, sprang into sight, streaming across the hills behind which they had fixed their camp. Led by a chief on a white horse, they waved their banners and shouted in wild exultation at the supposed defeat of the attacking vessels. Keppel does not appear to have thought it worth while to take any notice of the demonstration and continued his course to Berber. Beyond the casualty above mentioned the Egyptians sustained no loss in the two days' engagement. There were no means of arriving at the number of killed and wounded on the Dervish side, though from the accuracy of the gunboats' fire and the fact that they expendedno less than 653 shells upon the defenders it may be assumed that their loss was considerable.159
On the 1st November General Hunter made another reconnaissance with the gunboats, this time as far as the foot of the Shabluka, or Sixth Cataract. As on the previous occasions, the flotilla, both in going and returning, shelled the forts whilst passing Metammeh, where a large number of Dervishes, both mounted and on foot, showed themselves. The fire in reply from the enemy was ill directed, and the gunboats got back to Berber with only three men wounded.
The result of the reconnaissance was to show that Mahmoud was still in force at Metammeh and meant fighting. His men were nevertheless in great difficulty for want of the supplies asked for from Omdurman. To procure food they took to raiding the neighbouring Jaalin villages, a party of about 1,000 of them having the temerity to proceed close to Berber, despite the presence of the large Egyptian force there. Evading the vigilance of the gunboat patrol, the marauders, divided into five bands, proceeded to attack the like number of villages simultaneously. The inhabitants, consisting of "friendlies," had, however, been furnished by the Government with Remingtons. Of these they made such good use that in each instance they beat off the Dervish attack and forced the aggressors to retire.
After the fall of Abu Hamid had insured the non-interruption of the work of constructing the military railway from Wady Halfa to Abu Hamid, the line was pushed on, and finally completed on 31st October. Abu Hamid was not, however, destined to be the terminal station. The advantage of continuing the railway to Berber for the purpose of bringing up supplies, as well as to facilitate the further advance in the direction of Omdurman was too obvious to escape attention. So, £200,000 being set apart by the Egyptian Government to meet the cost, the work was commenced and pushed forward with all possible rapidity.
Egyptian rule being now practically re-established in the Soudan, negotiations took place between the Egyptian and Italian Governments for the retrocession of Kassala, in accordance with the arrangement under which Egypt assented to theItalian occupation. The negotiations resulted in an agreement that the town and contiguous territory should be formally handed over to Egypt on the 25th December, 1897.
As the time drew near the Sirdar, now Major-General Sir Herbert Kitchener, who had been absent at Merawi, proceeded to Cairo and thence to Souakim and Massowah, to arrange with the Italian military authorities for the passage through the Italian colony of Erythrea of the Egyptian troops which were to relieve the existing garrison of Kassala.
Kassala, which, after being for many years lost to Egypt, was now about to be restored, is a place of such interest that any history of the Soudan would be imperfect without a reference to its past and present position.
The situation of Kassala is somewhat remarkable. As will be seen on referring to the map, it forms one of the corners of what may be considered an equilateral triangle, the other corners being at Berber and Khartoum. The distances between the three places are approximately the same.
Originally constructed by Mehemet Ali in 1840 for the protection of the fertile province of Taka against the Abyssinians, Kassala gradually acquired a large trade, and developed into a town of 60,000 inhabitants.
On the 30th July, 1885, after a siege which lasted twenty months, it fell into the hands of Osman Digna's followers.
Kassala, as a Dervish stronghold, constituted a grave danger to Egypt, which in 1891, being equally unable "to take it or leave it," at the suggestion of the British Government, consented to its transfer to the Italians, then established at Massowah. By the terms of the agreement, Italy was to give back Kassala as soon as the Khedive's rule should be re-established in the Soudan.
It was not, however, till 1894, and then only after a hard fight between 2,600 Italian and the like number of Dervish troops, that the Italians, under General Baratieri, succeeded in occupying their new possession.
Even after Kassala had passed into their hands, the Italians had anything but a happy time there. The Dervish hordes were constantly raiding round the place, and, though beaten off by the superior discipline and valour of the Italian troops, the Dervishes invariably returned and at times inflicted severe losses on theItalians and their native allies. In 1896 Kassala was regularly invested for three months by the Dervishes, and in March the situation reached a most critical stage. The Italians, numbering with their native allies 37,000 men, had been hopelessly defeated by the Abyssinians at Adowa on the 29th February, with a loss of 7,000 killed, wounded, and missing. The Abyssinians also captured 1,500 prisoners and fifty-two guns. As ill-luck would have it, the Italians had not only the Abyssinians, but the Mahdists, on their hands, and Kassala was then hemmed in by an immense force of Dervishes, and no means existed of relieving the Italian garrison.
This was the moment when the British Government, in the hope of creating a diversion in their favour, hurried forward the Dongola Expedition in the manner referred to in a previous chapter. This was followed by the Italians inflicting a severe defeat on the Dervishes, 5,000 in number, on the 2nd April, 1896, at Mount Mokram, killing some 800, and compelling the rest to retreat beyond the Atbara river.
In January, 1897, Kassala was again threatened by Dervishes, but General Vigano once more caused them to retire.
The Egyptian troops told off to occupy Kassala consisted of the 16th Egyptian Battalion and some artillery, in all 850 men, under Colonel Parsons.
Arriving at Massowah from Souakim on the 29th November, 1897, they only waited long enough to be reviewed by the "Sirdar," and then marched through the Italian territory of Erythrea to Kassala. They encountered the greatest consideration and kindness at the different Italian posts. On the force approaching Kassala on the 18th December, it was received by Major de Bernardis, the Governor, with a guard of honour; and a salute of twenty-one guns was fired from the fort as the Egyptian flag was hoisted side by side with that of Italy. Until the 25th, the date fixed for the formal cession, the Egyptians remained in camp about a mile from the fort.
Arrangements were now made for taking over a battalion of 700 natives which the Italians had raised from amongst the "friendlies," and who readily consented to take service under the Khedive.
In the interval before the 25th Colonel Parsons, by way of trying the qualities of the new levies, indulged them in a littlefighting. Two places held by the Dervishes, El Fashir and Osobri, situated on the Atbara river, and about fifty miles from Kassala, were attacked and taken, the latter only, however, after a siege of six days.
Whilst the "friendlies" were thus engaged, Kassala, on Christmas Day, was handed over to Colonel Parsons. As the Italian flag was hauled down the Egyptian artillery saluted it with twenty-one guns, and the Italians quitting a place the defence of which had cost the lives of so many of their brave companions, marched away across the desert.160
At the beginning of the year 1898, the position of the opposing forces was somewhat asfollows:—The Khalifa's principal army, numbering upwards of 40,000 men, remained concentrated at Omdurman. Mahmoud, who had by this time been joined by Osman Digna, was still holding Metammeh with a force which had been increased to 20,000 men.
The Egyptian army was occupying Berber, with its most advanced post at Ed Damer. Abu Hamid, Merawi, Dongola, and all the other various positions along the line of communication down the river, were also held by Egyptian troops. Military posts had been established between Berber and Souakim, and Kassala was garrisoned by an Egyptian battalion and the "friendlies" taken over from the Italians. Progress had been made with the railway communications. The Egyptian line from Cairo had been extended to Luxor, and the military line across the desert from Wady Halfa had been brought forward from Abu Hamid to Abu Dis, or nearly a third of the distance to Berber.
On the last day of the previous year, the Intelligence Department learnt that Mahmoud, pressed, it was said, by the Khalifa, either to advance and destroy the Egyptians, or to fall back upon Omdurman, contemplated moving down the Nile on Berber.The 10,000 highly trained Egyptian soldiers, whom the Sirdar was able to put in the field, being deemed insufficiently strong to meet Mahmoud's undisciplined savages, a brigade of British troops was telegraphed for. In reply, Sir Francis Grenfell, commanding the Army of Occupation, gave orders on the 2nd January for the 1st Battalion of the Warwickshire Regiment, from Alexandria, and the 1st Battalions of the Lincolnshire and the Cameron Highlanders, from Cairo, to proceed up the river at once. The Seaforth Highlanders were also ordered to Egypt, from Malta. No time was lost in sending forward the reinforcements, and before the end of the month they had reached Wady Halfa, with the exception of the Seaforths, which it was intended to station, in the first instance, at Assouan. Major-General Gatacre, an officer who had seen much service in Burmah, was despatched from Aldershot to take command of the British brigade.
Whilst the British troops were finding their way to the front, the Nile Valley railway from Kermeh was being utilized for the purpose of bringing down as many of the Egyptian soldiers as could be spared from the Dongola district to Wady Halfa, whence they were rapidly transported across the desert by the military railway to Abu Hamid, and thence to Abu Dis.161
To give warning of Mahmoud's advance, the gunboats made frequent reconnaissances to Shendy and Metammeh, and parties of "friendlies" also patrolled the river banks above Ed-Damer, and the adjacent desert. The Dervishes, on their part, were not wholly inactive, and occasionally indulged in a little raiding, as opportunities offered.
On the 10th February, Mahmoud, probably considering that if he were to advance at all, he should do so before the Egyptian force was strengthened by the arrival of the British soldiers, commenced to move his army across the Nile to Shendy preparatory to marching them to attack Berber. The Dervishes having only a few native boats and some hurriedly constructed rafts as a means of transport, the crossing occupied an entire fortnight. During this period, Commander Keppel, with two gunboats, steamed to Metammeh, and on one occasion dispersed with his Maxims a party of riflemen stationed to cover the crossing.No serious attempt, however, was made to oppose the movement of Mahmoud's force across the river, and by the 25th February the operation was completed. Apparently a great opportunity was thus lost. With the absolute command of the river which the Egyptians possessed in the gunboat flotilla, nothing would have been easier than to have taken advantage of the moment when Mahmoud's army was divided into two sections by the Nile, to fall upon and destroy each section separately. That something of the kind was not attempted has been explained on the supposition that it formed part of the Sirdar's strategy to encourage Mahmoud to leave his fortified position at Metammeh, and attack the Egyptians on open ground.
Thanks to the facilities afforded by the railway, Gatacre's British brigade was, by this time, getting well forward. In the middle of February, the Warwicks, Lincolns, and Camerons were all assembled at Abu Dis, where they went into camp for some weeks. During this period, everything was done to get the men into good condition by means of route marching and field exercises. Following the precedent established by Lord Wolseley in previous campaigns, the most rigid abstinence in the matter of alcohol was enforced, even the use of the harmless and comforting beer being forbidden.162The result was that the men were in excellent condition, and, as Gatacre in one of his addresses to the soldiers told them, "there was an almost total absence of crime, and, he might say, of drunkenness also," the latter observation provoking roars of laughter.
The brigade was armed with the Lee-Metford magazine rifle. This weapon, though possessing great range and penetrating power, had, by reason of its small diameter (·303), the disadvantage of making so small a hole as to render it more than doubtful if it would be effectual in stopping the headlong rush which forms the principal feature of a Dervish attack. To remedy this defect, the tips of the bullets were scooped out at the pointed end to the depth of about half an inch. Experiments showed that a bullet treated in this manner expands like an umbrella on striking an object, and thus makes a sufficiently large hole for the purpose required. Whilst in camp at Abu Dis, details from each regiment were told off to conduct this operation, and over amillion of bullets were subjected to this treatment. The result was that a thoroughly effective missile, appropriately named a "man-stopper," was created.
Curiously enough, at the moment when General Gatacre was preparing his dum-dum bullets for use against the Dervishes General Kitchener decided to discontinue the use of the dumb-dumb missiles which he had been employing against the correspondents of the press. These weapons, which were equally "man-stoppers," were in the form of general orders by which correspondents were forbidden to go beyond that ever-changing point known as "rail head." As "rail head" was necessarily always somewhat in the rear of the operations, the prohibition was considered a great hardship, as it curtailed the power of the correspondents to send the earliest intelligence of what was going on at the front. A great agitation was made in the English journals at the time, and before further operations were proceeded with the Sirdar modified the restrictions within certain reasonable limits. The prohibition thenceforth extended only to going out on reconnaissances, to going near the Sirdar, not in itself a serious privation considering the past friction between him and the pressmen, and to standing in front of the firing line during general actions. This last, however, was, according to one writer, Mr. G. W. Steevens, the author of "With Kitchener to Khartoum," not strictly insisted upon.
Space does not allow of entering into the merits of the controversy on the subject of the relations between newspaper correspondents and military authorities. At the same time it may be observed that a general who puts unnecessary obstacles in the way of the press, or exercises too rigid a censorship, always lays himself open to the remark that, like Cæsar, he prefers to write his own "Commentaries."
On the 25th February, when Mahmoud had completed his crossing to the east bank, General Gatacre received orders to proceed at once with his brigade to Berber. The orders reached him after the troops had been out all day exercising in the desert. Nevertheless, tents were at once struck, and the same evening the advance began. As far as "rail head," now at Sheriek, the men were transported by train, after which they proceeded on foot, and marching partly by night and partly by day, on the 2nd March they reached Berber, where, in theabsence of the Sirdar at Wady Halfa, General Hunter had his head-quarters with two Egyptian brigades.