When it was to return home by
the east channel, that would lead direct to my station.
We had not seen any Baris upon the island, which appeared to be quite
deserted. The character of the ground had changed. We had left the dry
portion, which had been lately sown with dhurra, and we had arrived
among scattered masses of tall reeds growing from mud lately hardened by
the sun and full of deep cattle-ruts.
I threw out skirmishers, as we shortly entered a bad piece of country.
At this moment wo heard shots fired at the tail of the island, about two
miles in our front.
We pushed on at the double, until stopped by a deep channel of the river
about thirty yards wide. On the other side we now heard the horns of the
natives and the lowing of cattle. It was necessary to skirt the banks of
the channel through thick forest; thus, following the stream, we shortly
arrived at the main river, just in time to see the natives at a distance
of a quarter of a mile swimming a large herd of cattle across the stream
to the east shore, where they landed and safely gained the forest. They
were quickly pursued by the troops who, having landed at the tail of the
island, were in chase; and being supplied with boats, they crossed over
the river and followed hard upon the track of the retreating cattle.
The Baris did not suspect that they would be followed to the main shore;
thus upon reaching the forest they continued their retreat leisurely. My
black troops were wonderful runners; thus, when once upon the track of
the herd, they went along like hounds and overtook the Baris, who had no
idea of the pursuit until the soldiers were among them. The affair ended
by the capture of a portion of the herd, and the return to camp at 5.30
P.M. We had eaten nothing since the previous evening, as the boat
containing our breakfast had not yet appeared. We had been on our legs
in the sun for fourteen hours, thus we were ready for dinner on the
return to camp. I was anxious about the missing boat. On the following
day, June 6, at 4.40 P.M., the lost dingy arrived with her crew all
safe. They had missed their way by taking a wrong channel of the river,
which led them into a labyrinth of high reeds, where they were obliged
to pass the night among clouds of mosquitoes.
On the following day they began the tedious journey by rowing homeward
against the stream. They came suddenly upon a large body of natives, who
immediately attacked them with arrows, one of which went through the
trousers of a soldier. My men told a long story, and made themselves out
to be perfect heroes; but my servants and the boatmen told a very
different tale, and declared that they had thrown themselves down in the
bottom of the boat to avoid the arrows, and my servant, Mohammed Haroon,
had himself fired my heavy gun loaded with mould shot at the enemy.
On 7th June I discovered that the Baris of Gondokoro had leagued
themselves with the natives of Belinian against us.
They had attacked conjointly on several occasions. On this day the
natives in force having, as usual, crept stealthily from bush to tree
without being perceived by the soldiers, made a sudden rush upon the
cattle guards, and shot one soldier with an arrow and wounded another
with a lance. I immediately gave orders for an attack on Belinian that
night. At 12.30 A.M. I left my station on horseback, accompanied by
Lieutenant Baker and Mr. Higginbotham, together with Lieutenant-Colonel
Abdel-Kader and twenty men of the "Forty Thieves." Not a word was
spoken, as it was important to march without the slightest noise that
might alarm the native scouts who were generally prowling about
throughout the night. We arrived at head-quarters, a mile and a half
distant, where four companies with one gun had been ordered to be in
readiness. (My little station, Hellet-et-Sit, was a mile and a half
north from the camp of Gondokoro, on the river's bank.) At 1 A.M. We
started with a Bari guide named Sherroom, who had volunteered to serve
me, together with his friend Morgian, at the commencement of the war.
These men spoke Arabic, and since the flight of Tomby, the interpreter
(who had joined our enemies), these two Baris were our invaluable
allies.
The route to Belinian lay for the first two miles through open park-like
country. We then entered the forest, where the darkness made it
difficult to drag the gun, the wheels of which constantly stuck in the
stumps and roots of trees. Several times we had to halt, for the rear to
come up with this unmanageable gun, and I feared the delay might destroy
our chance of taking the enemy by surprise.
To make matters worse, the route became swampy. Sometimes the horses
sank nearly hock-deep in mud, which in the pitch darkness they could not
avoid. In such places it required the force of thirty men to drag the
gun, and the delays became serious. Lieutenant-Colonel Tayib Agha
commanded the three companies of Soudani troops who escorted the
field-piece, and took it in turns to assist the artillerymen in the
weary work of dragging the gun through swamps and bush.
The night wore on; it began to rain. I was riding in advance with
Lieutenant Baker, Mr. Higginbotham, and twenty of the "Forty Thieves,"
while Raouf Bey followed me with fifty Egyptian troops. It was
absolutely necessary to push on.
