In 1895 The Foreign Office Took
Over Control Of The Company's Possessions, And A
Protectorate Was Proclaimed; And Ten Years Later
The Administration Of The Country Was Transferred
To The Colonial Office.
The last serious fighting on the island took place
so recently as 1895-6, when a Swahili chief named
M'baruk bin Rashed, who had three times
previously risen in rebellion against the Sultan of
Zanzibar, attempted to defy the British and to
throw off their yoke.
He was defeated on several
occasions, however, and was finally forced to flee
southwards into German territory. Altogether,
Mombasa has in the past well deserved its native
name of Kisiwa M'vitaa, or " Isle of War"; but
under the settled rule now obtaining, it is rapidly
becoming a thriving and prosperous town, and as
the port of entry for Uganda, it does a large
forwarding trade with the interior and has several
excellent stores where almost anything, from a
needle to an anchor, may readily be obtained.
Kilindini is, as I have said, on the opposite side
of the island, and as its name - "the place of deep
waters" - implies, has a much finer harbour than
that possessed by Mombasa. The channel between
the island and the mainland is here capable of
giving commodious and safe anchorage to the
very largest vessels, and as the jetty is directly
connected with the Uganda Railway, Kilindini
has now really become the principal port, being
always used by the liners and heavier vessels.
I had spent nearly a week in Mombasa, and was
becoming very anxious to get my marching orders,
when one morning I was delighted to receive an
official letter instructing me to proceed to Tsavo,
about one hundred and thirty-two miles from the
coast, and to take charge of the construction of the
section of the line at that place, which had just then
been reached by railhead.
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