In active service, the officers carried sniders; thus, the corps
complete consisted of forty-eight sniders; but together with Lieutenant
Baker and myself, it comprised fifty rifles.
The high state of discipline and the fine morale of this little force
was a good example of what may be effected, even with a material of so
low a reputation as the negro. My men were natives of various tribes
scattered over an immense extent of Central Africa. Each had a certain
love of the country from which he had been originally stolen by the
slave-traders when a boy, before he found his way into government
service. I always endeavoured to keep up this feeling, and to create
emulation among the men of different tribes; thus, a native of Pongo
would assume a superiority over a Dinka, although the Dinka considered
himself of a higher class than a Pongo. A Noba regarded himself as
superior to all others. But by degrees I established a principle that
was generally accepted by them all - that an old soldier with a good
reputation should take precedence of all others, without reference to
caste or tribe. Thus, the aim of all young privates would be to become
old soldiers, and to rise in rank according to their merits. There were
several excellent examples of good soldiers in "The Forty," among whom
stood first Mohammed-el-Feel, sergeant of the body-guard. The latter
comprised ten men, selected from "The Forty" as creme de la creme;
these men were exempted from all labour, and they formed the guard of
two sentries by night, and one by day.
The discipline of this picked corps - "Abd-el-Kader and the Forty
Thieves" - was the commencement of a great moral reform, that resulted in
an improved tone throughout the force, which ultimately did the great
work of the expedition.
The efficiency of "The Forty" was an established fact of what could be
accomplished where officers and men were governed by that peculiar
confidence that bound them together as one man. Throughout the
expedition, after this confidence had been once established, I never for
an instant doubted the fidelity of my men; they would have followed me
through fire or water, without the slightest hesitation. In action, "The
Forty" were always in advance, and they were watched with eagerness and
even pride by the other regiments: when thrown out as skirmishers they
climbed rocks, pushed through jungles, and cleared the enemy from the
country with irresistible activity. Promotion from the line to "The
Forty" was considered as an honour, and so perfect was the esprit de
corps, that in the event of a vacancy being caused by sickness, or other
cause, the men reported to me the character of the new-comer before he
was admitted, and respectfully declined to receive him if he bore a
doubtful reputation; virtually he was "black-balled."
A corps of this character was a nucleus for an extension of military
morality. The "Forty Thieves" would not admit a thief; and they became
generally accepted as a model of what government soldiers should become.
I believe that if it were possible to convert the greater portion of
African savages into disciplined soldiers, it would be the most rapid
stride towards their future civilization. The fact of obedience being
enforced, and the necessity of order, industry, and discipline, together
with clothing and cleanliness, is all that is absolutely required to
bring a savage within the bounds of good management. A savage who has
led a wild and uncontrolled life must first learn to obey authority
before any great improvement can be expected. A soldier must obey, and
he learns to respect his officers as his superiors; thus, a savage who
has learnt all that he knows from his officers, whom he admits as his
superiors, will quickly adopt their religion, as he has been obliged to
adopt their military rules. My soldiers were all Mohammedans, simply
because they had been taught by their officers that good soldiers should
be true believers.
As I have already described, my station was a mile and a half distant
from head-quarters, and the arrangements under my personal inspection
were very different from the lax discipline of the officers at
Gondokoro.
The natives of Belinian had disregarded the warning they had received,
and now, having leagued themselves with the Baris of Gondokoro, they
were constantly on the watch for an opportunity of surprising the cattle
guards. Concealing themselves behind thick foliage, they stalked the
careless sentries with the adroitness of American Indians, and sometimes
succeeded in making a dash and driving off a few head of cattle.
I was obliged to take extra precautions during the night, as my little
station was dependent only upon "The Forty," while the camp at
head-quarters was occupied by 1,100 men, in addition to about 400
sailors, and the six Englishmen.
The natives disturbed us every night, and were constantly fired at by
the sentries. I served out cartridges containing eight-mould shot, each
to be rammed down over the ball in the muskets for the night sentries:
these would be more likely to hit a thief in the dark than a single
bullet. The muskets were given to the sentries in addition to their
rifles.
I placed my men every night, concealed by cover so as to command the
various approaches. The station was conveniently situated, as a large
and deep lake completely defended the north flank for a distance of
about 400 yards. The river defended the east face: thus we were only
open on two sides, one of which was commanded by the camp of "The
Forty."
On 28th June it rained steadily during the night.
