Chapter XVI: Book VI: Events at Kartoum (4)

_December 9._—A party of sixty men, with ammunition, camels, and some horsemen, left the Dem of the Mahdi, and went north this morning. The Arabs on the right bank of the White Nile came over to the left bank of the Blue Nile, and went through some antics, so we suppose something is up. A man was wounded yesterday at Omdurman, which fort reports all right. Letter sent by Wadji Barra in Appendix AB. The Arabs fired yesterday not rifled shell, but round shell, which they must have got at Obeyed, which shows they are out of ammunition of the regulation sort. What called forth the letter from Wadji Barra (Appendix AB) was a paper I issued (Appendix CD) to the town, when I received Towfik’s telegram saying he would hold the Soudan, and which I gave to a man to send to the Arabs. If Lord Palmerston was alive (or Forster was Premier) he would never leave the Soudan, without proclaiming the emancipation of the slaves. On 18th December, 1862, Lincoln proclaimed abolition of slavery in the United States; this would be a good day to issue such a proclamation in the Soudan. Wadji Barra’s letter calls me Pasha of Kartoum, and says I have been deaf to all their entreaties. Stewart left this place _three months ago!_ to-day. A man was wounded by the Arab fire at Bourré: they fired twelve rounds from these guns at the fort. I feel sure that the cause of the Mahdi’s coming here is, that he got hold of Herbin’s ‘French Consul’s’ journal, written in a hostile critical spirit, and thinking it true, he advanced from Schatt. I expect Hansall, the Austrian Consul, also wrote in the style of Lamentations, for he also sent down a journal by the _Abbas_. It is remarkable that the very effort which I made to obtain the ear of Europe should have thus recoiled on us. I have for the present abandoned the attack on the Arabs at Goba, as Omdurman is more important, and as I expect the Arabs there have taken away their gun; it has not (up to 2 P.M.) fired to-day. I would like to ask the Mahdi—allowing _pro formâ_ that he is the Mahdi—what will be his ultimate work? Certainly his present work is not exhilarating, firing on his fellow-creatures night and day. The siege of Sevastopol lasted 326 days. We are at our 271st day. In their case they had always their communication open, and they dealt with an enemy who would recognise the rights of war; whereas we are not so placed. They, the Russians, were united, and had no civil population to deal with; yet I cannot say I think we are over great heroes (the fact is, that, if one analyses human glory, it is composed of nine-tenths twaddle, perhaps ninety-nine hundredths twaddle). We are only short of the duration of siege of Sevastopol 57 days, and we have had _no respite_, like the Russians had, during the winter of 1854-55; and neither Nicholas nor Alexander speculated on (well, we will not say what, but we will put it) “counting the months.” Of course it will be looked on as very absurd to compare the two blockades, that of Sevastopol and Kartoum; but if properly weighed, one was just as good as the other. The Russians had money, we had none; they had skilled officers, we had none; they had no civil population, we had forty thousand; they had their route open and had news, we had neither.

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_December 10._—A slave came in to-day, he had been with Slatin. He says Slatin is still in chains, that there are two insurrections in Kordofan, and rumour is rife that the Expeditionary Force is near. Fort Omdurman is all right. The slave says the Arabs have not much ammunition. The Arabs fired thirty-one rounds at Bourré to-day, and wounded four men (one an officer, a Major Souleiman Effi, fatally). The Arabs have been firing stones to-day. Goba is quiet, they did not fire their gun to-day, or yesterday. I expect it has gone down to the river-bank. The slave who came in says the Mahdi’s return to Kordofan is cut off by the insurrection in his rear; so we and he are like two rats in a box. (I wish _he_ was _out_ of the _box!_) I have ordered the two steamers to stay up at Bourré, towards which place the Arabs seem to be directing an unpleasant degree of attention. (Truly I am worn to a shadow with the food question; it is one continual demand.) Five men deserted to-day. The Arabs shape the stones they fire, like to the shells of their guns; they will soon spoil the rifling of their guns if they continue this.

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_December 11._—The Arabs fired their gun from Goba three times; one shell fell into the water before the Palace—two passed over it. I put down more mines at Bourré. I have given the whole garrison an extra month’s pay in addition to the three months’ they had before received—I will not (_D. V._) hesitate to give them £100,000, if I think it will keep the town.

Three soldiers came in from the Arabs who report advance of the Expedition towards Berber. The Arabs fired fourteen rounds from their guns at Bourré. The officers say that there is a European directing the Arab guns there. (I wonder if it is that Frenchman who came from Dongola, and who, I thought, might have been Renan.) Sennaar is holding out and in great force (so say the three soldiers), so is Kassala. The Dem of the Mahdi is altered in appearance. They say he has sent off the families of his adherents into the interior.

3.30 P.M.—The Arabs fired three shells at the Palace from Goba; two went into the water, one passed over the Palace. This always irritates me, for it is so personal, and from one’s own soldiers too! It is not very pleasant also to feel at any moment you may have a shell in your room, for the creatures fire at all hours. The steamers fired on the Arabs at Bourré this morning, and one of the Arab shells struck one steamer, and another struck a santal which we have there to defend the flank; but neither did any harm. Two soldiers deserted to the Arabs to-day—these men are generally those who have before been with the Arabs, and had deserted to us. The Arabs fired another shell at the Palace this evening, which burst in the air.

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_December 12._—Small Church Parade. I sincerely hope this will be the last we shall have to witness. We have in hand 1,796,000 rounds Remingtons ammunition; 540 rounds Krupp; 6000 rounds mountain gun ammunition; £140 in specie; £18,000 in paper in treasury!! £60,000 in town in paper. 110,000 okes of biscuits; 700 ardebs of dhoora. This morning I was told a long story of report concerning the expeditionary force being at El Damer, near the Atbara river; of how Berber had surrendered, &c. On tracing it, I found it was a fib put in circulation by one of the chief Ulemas, to encourage the people.

3.30 P.M. The Arabs fired two shells at the Palace; one burst in the air, the other fell in the water in a direct line with the window I was sitting at, distant about a hundred yards.

3.40 P.M. They fired another shell, which fell only fifty yards short of the Palace; another burst in the air. I have sent the buglers up to stop this target practice. All these shells are in good line for the west wing, in which the Arabs know I stop. They fired seven shells in all in this affair; though the Arabs have fired over two thousand shells at us, I do not think we have lost by artillery fire more than three men.

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_December 13._—The steamers went up and attacked the Arabs at Bourré (certainly this day-after-day delay has a most disheartening effect on every one. To-day is the 276th day of our anxiety). The Arabs appear, by all accounts, to have suffered to-day heavily at Bourré. We had none wounded by the Arabs; but one man, by the discharge of a bad cartridge, got a cut in neck: this was owing to the same cause as nearly blew out my eyes the other day. We are going to send down the _Bordeen_ the day after to-morrow, and with her I shall send this journal. _If some effort is not made before ten days’ time the town will fall._ It is inexplicable, this delay. If the Expeditionary Forces have reached the river and met my steamers, one hundred men are all that we require, just to show themselves.

I send this journal, for I have little hopes of saving it if the town falls. I put in (Appendix EF), the sort of arrangement I would make with Zubair Pasha for the future government of the Soudan. Ferratch Pasha is really showing an amount of vigour I did not give him credit for. Even if the town falls under the nose of the Expeditionary Force, it will not, in my opinion, justify the abandonment of Senaar and Kassala, or of the Equatorial Province, by Her Majesty’s Government. All that is absolutely necessary is, for fifty of the Expeditionary Force to get on board a steamer and come up to Halfeyeh, and thus let their presence be felt; this is not asking much, but it must happen _at once_; or it will (as usual) be too late. A soldier deserted to the Arabs to-day from the North Fort. The buglers on the roof, being short of stature, are put on boxes to enable them to fire over the parapet; one with the recoil of rifle was knocked right over, and caused considerable excitement. We thought he was killed, by the noise he made in his fall. The Arabs fired their Krupps continually into town from the south front, but no one takes any notice of it. The Arabs at Goba only fired one shell at the Palace to-day, which burst in the air.

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_December 14th._—Arabs fired two shells at the Palace this morning; 546 ardebs dhoora! in store; also 83,525 okes of biscuit! 10.30 A.M. The steamers are down at Omdurman, engaging the Arabs, consequently I am on _tenterhooks!_ 11.30 A.M. Steamers returned; the _Bordeen_ was struck by a shell in her battery; we had only one man wounded. We are going to send down the _Bordeen_ to-morrow with this journal. If I was in command of the two hundred men of the Expeditionary Force, which are all that are necessary for the movement, I should stop just below Halfeyeh, and attack the Arabs at that place before I came on here to Kartoum. I should then communicate with the North Fort, and act according to circumstances. Now MARK THIS, if the Expeditionary Force, and I ask for no more than two hundred men, does not come in ten days, _the town may fall_; and I have done my best for the honour of our country. Good bye.

C. G. GORDON.

You send me no information, ‘though you have lots of money.

C. G. G.

APPENDICES REFERRED TO IN THE JOURNALS.

APPENDICES TO BOOK I.