The forest on the left bank
is about thirty-seven miles in length, but it is merely a few hundred
yards in width, beyond which the country is prairie. On the east bank,
where there is no forest, we saw giraffes, buffaloes, and antelopes in
considerable numbers during the day.
"April 18. - Filling up wood in the morning. We then travelled three
hours, and halted eleven miles from the White Nile junction. During the
voyage we saw a lion and lioness with five cubs running off alarmed at
the steamer.
"In the afternoon I went out and shot seven geese and two fine black
bucks.
"Lieutenant Baker was unfortunately ill with fever. Here we met four
more vessels with a company of soldiers from Khartoum. They of course
remained with us.
"April 19: - In an hour and a half we arrived at the White Nile, and
twenty minutes later we saw three vessels belonging to the mudir, or
governor, of Fashoda. We heard from the people on these boats that the
governor (Ali Bey, the Koordi) was making a razzia on the Shillook
tribe. The banks of the river were crowded with natives running away in
all directions; women were carrying off all their little household
goods, and children were following their parents, each with a basket on
their heads containing either food or something too valuable to be left
behind. I immediately went off in a rowing boat, and, after much
difficulty, I succeeded in inducing some of the natives who could speak
Arabic to stop and converse with me. They declared that the Turks had
attacked them without provocation, and that the Koordi (as the governor
of Fashoda was called) had stolen many of their women and children, and
had killed their people, as he was generally plundering the country. I
begged the natives not to fly from their district, but to wait until I
should make inquiries on the following day; and I promised to restore
the women and children, should they have been kidnapped.
"I halted at a forest about nine miles from the junction of the Bahr
Giraffe, where a bend of the river concealed the steamers and diahbeeah.
"Late at night, when most people were asleep, I sent orders to the chief
engineer of the No. 10 steamer to have the steam up at five on the
following morning.
"April 20. - We started punctually at the appointed hour; my diahbeeah,
as usual, being towed by the steamer. As we rounded the point and
quickly came in sight of the governor's vessels, I watched them with a
powerful telescope. For some time we appeared to be unobserved. I knew
that the troops were not celebrated for keeping a sharp lookout, and we
arrived within three-quarters of a mile before the sound of our paddles
attracted their attention. The telescope now disclosed some of the
mysteries of the expedition.
