Fire and Sword in the Sudan Part 26

The Khalifa, alarmed and shocked by such language, which no one had ever dared before to use in his presence, was furious. If Adlan had not had such power in the country, he would never have dared to speak like this; and if he had not acc.u.mulated considerable wealth, he would never have risked giving up so lucrative a position. Abdullahi, however, controlled himself, and replied, "I have taken note of what you have said, and will think it over; leave me now, and I will give you an answer to-morrow." He went out; but ere he had reached the door the Khalifa had made up his mind. After sunset the next day, the two Khalifas, all the Kadis, and Yakub were summoned to a council; and, shortly afterwards, Adlan was called before them. In a few words, similar to those he had used the previous day, the Khalifa spoke to him about his att.i.tude, adding, "You spoke against Yakub, and said that I had estranged myself from the hearts of my partisans; do you not know that my brother Yakub is my eye and my right hand? It is you who have estranged the hearts of my friends from me; and now you dare to do the same with my brother; but the Almighty G.o.d is righteous, and you shall not escape your punishment." He then made a sign to the mulazemin, who had been kept in readiness, to seize him and carry him off to prison.

Without uttering a word of reproach, with a firm step, and holding his head high in the air, he submitted to his fate, determined that his enemies should not have the satisfaction of seeing him downhearted or afraid.

The Khalifa at once gave instructions that Adlan's house should be confiscated, and the Beit el Mal property seized. A careful search of the former was ordered; and the employes of the latter were instructed to render immediate and complete accounts. In Adlan's pocket was found a piece of paper inscribed all over with mysterious writing, in which the name of the Khalifa frequently appeared; it had been written with a solution of saffron, which is supposed to possess some secret power; and the unfortunate Adlan was not less superst.i.tious than the majority of the Sudanese. The paper was declared to be sorcery, which is punishable most severely; Adlan was p.r.o.nounced to be mukhalef (disobedient) in not carrying out his orders, and a traitor, because he had attempted to sow dissension between the Khalifa and his brother Yakub, and, in the endeavour to effect this, had been guilty of the use of sorcery. The verdict was mutilation, or death, and he was allowed to make his choice; he selected the latter.

With his hands tied across his chest, and to the strains of the melancholy ombea, he was led forth to the market-place, accompanied by an immense crowd. Calmly mounting the angareb beneath the scaffold, he himself placed his head in the noose, and, refusing to drink the water offered to him, told the hangman to complete his work; the rope was pulled taut, the angareb was removed, and there Ibrahim swung like a marble statue, until his soul left his body, the outstretched index finger alone indicating that he died in the true faith of Islam. In spite of the interdiction, wails of sorrow filled the city; but the Khalifa rejoiced that he had rid himself of so dangerous an enemy, and refrained from punishing this disobedience to his orders. He sent his brother Yakub to the funeral, as if to show to the world that Adlan had merely been punished in accordance with the law, and that the well-known animosity between the two had nothing to do with the matter.

His successor as Emin Beit el Mal was a certain Nur Wad Ibrahim whose grandfather was a Takruri. He did not, therefore, belong to the tribes of the Nile valley, and thus had a greater claim on the Khalifa's confidence and consideration.

As regards myself, the Khalifa seemed to grow daily more suspicious.

Previous to Ibrahim Adlan's departure for the Gezira, the answer to my letter, which had been sent to my family through Osman Digna, had arrived. It contained only news of a private nature, and expressed the great delight of my family that they had succeeded in at last getting into communication with me. At the same time, they wrote to the Khalifa in submissive words, expressing their grat.i.tude for the kind and honourable treatment which I received at his hands. They also a.s.sured him of their great devotion to him, and thanked him for the high honour he had conferred upon them by inviting them to come to Omdurman; but my brother regretted his inability to accept, as he was at that time a secretary in the office of the High Chamberlain of His Majesty the Emperor of Austria, whilst the other brother was a lawyer and lieutenant in the Artillery Reserve; they were therefore both unable, in virtue of their positions, to undertake so long a journey. My master had called me up, and, on handing me the letters, had ordered me to translate them to him; then, considering for a few moments, he said to me, "It was my intention to induce one of your brothers to come here and see me; and I did what I had never done before,--wrote a letter to them. As they make excuses and refuse to come, and as they now know that you are well, I forbid you to have any more correspondence with them. Further communications would only make you unhappy. Do you understand what I mean?" "Certainly," I replied, "your orders shall be obeyed; and I also think that further communication with my relatives is not necessary."

"Where is the Gospel that has been sent to you?" asked he, looking at me fixedly. "I am a Moslem," I answered, for I was now on my guard; "and I have no Gospel in my house. They sent me a translation of the Kuran, the Holy Book, which your secretary saw when the box was opened, and which is still in my possession." "Then bring it to me to-morrow," he said, and signed to me to withdraw.

It was perfectly clear to me that he no longer trusted me; and I knew that after Nejumi's defeat he had several times spoken in this sense to the Kadis. I had already spent almost all the money I had received in gifts amongst my comrades; and now some of these began to murmur, and were disappointed that the sum was so small; and I knew that they were intriguing against me. Who could have induced him to believe that the Kuran which had been sent to me was the Gospel? The next day, I gave it to him. The translation was by Ullman. He examined it carefully, and then said: "You say that this is the Kuran; it is in the language of unbelievers, and perhaps they have made alterations." "It is a literal translation into my own language," I replied, calmly, "and its object is to make me understand the Holy Book which has come from G.o.d, and was made known to mankind by the Prophet, in the Arabic language. If you wish, you can send it to Neufeld, who is in captivity in the prison, and with whom I have no intercourse; and you can ascertain from him if my a.s.sertion is correct." "I do not mistrust you, and I believe what you say," he replied, in a somewhat more amiable tone; "but people have spoken to me about it, and you had better destroy the book." When I had told him that I was perfectly willing to do this, he continued, "Also I wish you to return the present your brothers and sisters sent me; I can make no use of it, and it will be a proof to them that I place no value on worldly possessions."

He now had his secretary summoned, and ordered him to write a letter in my name to my family, to the effect that it was not necessary to correspond any more; and, after I had signed it, it was sent, together with the travelling-bag, to the Beit el Mal, to be despatched to Suakin.

From that day, I was more careful than ever to do nothing to increase the mistrust which I saw had sprung up in Abdullahi's mind. After Adlan's death, however, he thought it necessary to warn me again, and cautioned me most seriously against becoming mixed up in any sort of conspiracy. a.s.sembling all his mulazemin, he a.s.serted, in the most forcible language, that I was suspected of being a spy; that he had been told I invariably questioned the camel postmen who arrived, about the situation; that I received visitors in my house at night who were known to be out of favour with him; and that I had gone so far as to inquire in what part of his house his bedroom was situated. "I am afraid," he continued, "that if you do not change your line of conduct, you will follow in the footsteps of my old enemy Adlan."

This was rather a blow to me; but I knew that now, more than ever, I had need of being calm and collected. "Sire!" said I, in a loud voice, "I cannot defend myself against unknown enemies; but I am perfectly innocent of all they have told you. I leave my detractors in the hands of G.o.d. For more than six years, in sunshine and rain, I have stood at your door, ever ready to receive and carry out your orders. At your command, I have given up all my old friends, and have no communication with any one. I have even given up all connection with my relatives, and that without the slightest remonstrance. Such a thing as conspiracy has never even entered my heart. During all these long years, I have never made a complaint. Sire, what have I done? All that I do is not done out of fear of you, but out of love for you; and I cannot do more. Should G.o.d still have further trials in store for me, I shall calmly and willingly submit to my fate; but I have full reliance in your sense of justice."

"What have you to say to his words?" he said to the a.s.sembled mulazemin, after a moment's silence. All, without exception, admitted that they had never noticed anything in my behaviour which could give rise to such a suspicion; my enemies also--and I well knew who they were, and who were responsible for getting me into this dangerous position--were obliged to admit this. "I forgive you," said he; "but avoid for the future giving further cause for complaint," and, holding out his hand for me to kiss, he signed to me to withdraw. He must have felt that he had wronged me; for the next day he summoned me, spoke to me kindly, and warned me against my enemies, who, he said, were as a thorn in my flesh. I professed affection and confidence in him; and he then said, in quite a confidential tone, "Do not make enemies, for you know that Mahdia is conducted in accordance with the Moslem law: should you be accused before the Kadi of treason, and two witnesses make good the accusation, you are lost; for I cannot go against the law to save you."

What an existence in a country where one's very life hung on the evidence of two witnesses! Thanking him for his advice, I promised to follow it, and said I would, of course, do all in my power to deserve his confidence. When I returned home at midnight, tired and worn out by this constant strain, my devoted Saadalla informed me, to my great annoyance, that, only a few minutes before, one of the Khalifa's eunuchs had brought a closely-veiled female, who was now in my house.

I ought to have been greatly pleased about this, for it was a proof that the Khalifa had forgiven me; but my first thought was, how to rid myself of this present without creating suspicion. Saadalla and I now entered the house; and, to my horror, I found that underneath the veil was an Egyptian who had been born at Khartum, and who was, consequently, from a Sudanese point of view, a lady of a comparatively fair complexion. She was seated on the carpet; and, after we had exchanged greetings, she replied to my query as to her nationality with such rapidity of speech that I, who spoke Arabic fairly well, had the greatest difficulty in following the romantic history of her life.

She was the daughter, she said, of an Egyptian officer who, I afterwards learnt, had only been a private soldier, and who had fallen in the fight against the Shilluks, under Yusef Bey. As this had taken place upwards of twenty years before, I could, without any great effort of calculation, estimate fairly accurately that this good lady was well out of her teens; and as she admitted that her first husband had been killed during the capture of Khartum, that her mother was an Abyssinian who had been educated in Khartum, and was still alive, and that she had an enormous number of relatives, I really believe that, had my head not been clean-shaven, my hair would veritably have stood on end. This far-travelled and widely-experienced lady informed me that she had been one of the many hundreds of Abu Anga's wives, and I had now been chosen as the happy successor of this old slave. After his death, she had been captured, with several of her rivals, by the Abyssinians, when King John attacked Gallabat, but had been subsequently liberated by Zeki Tummal; and she knew so many details of all the fights in this neighbourhood, that, had my memory been only capable of retaining them, they would have now been of great interest to my readers. A short time ago, the Khalifa had ordered Abu Anga's remaining widows to be brought to Omdurman, for distribution amongst his followers; she then went on to say that the Khalifa himself had specially selected her as my wife, and she added, in a subdued tone, that she rejoiced to have fallen into the hands of a fellow-countryman. I explained to her that I was not an Egyptian, but an European. As, however, my skin was somewhat tanned, and the circ.u.mstances in which I lived gave her a pretext for claiming me as a compatriot, I was obliged to say that I would provide as far as possible for her maintenance and comfort; and, as the night was well advanced, I bade her follow my servant Saadalla, who would make arrangements for her.

Such were the Khalifa's presents: instead of allocating a small sum of money from the Beit el Mal, by means of which I could have procured for myself a few comforts, he kept on sending me wives, who were not only a source of considerable expense to me, but also a cause of much anxiety and worry, inasmuch as I was continually struggling to free myself from their unwelcome presence. The next morning, the Khalifa laughingly asked me if I had received his present, and if I liked it. With the lesson of two days ago still fresh in my mind, I a.s.sured him that I was only too happy to receive this fresh proof of his affection, and that, please G.o.d, I should always live in the enjoyment of his favour. When I returned to my house before midday prayer, I found it full of females, who, notwithstanding the remonstrances of Saadalla, and jeering at his wrath, had entered by main force, and now introduced themselves to me as the nearest relatives of Fatma el Beida (The White Fatma), as the Khalifa's present was called.

A decrepid old Abyssinian lady introduced herself as my future mother-in-law; from her loquacity, I should instantly have recognised her as the mother of Fatma el Beida; and I could not help wondering how so small and fragile a body could contain so noisy and voluble a tongue.

She a.s.sured me of her pleasure that her daughter had been confided to my care, adding that she was convinced that I would accord to her her rightful position in my household. Here was I, the slave of a tyrant, and obliged to submit to the most wretched of circ.u.mstances; and now she talked to me of the position due to her daughter! I a.s.sured her that I would of course treat her daughter well; and, apologising that my time was so fully occupied, I fled. Before leaving, however, I ordered Saadalla to entertain them as well as he could, according to the custom of the country, and then to turn them all out, neck and crop, and, if necessary, to call the other servants to his a.s.sistance.

A few days afterwards, the Khalifa again inquired about Fatma; and as I knew that he was most anxious that I should lead as quiet and secluded a life as possible, I told him that, for the present, I had no objection to her person; but as her numerous relatives might possibly come in contact with people whose acquaintance neither he, my master, nor I should consider desirable, and that as in my efforts to prevent this I frequently came into collision with both sides, it was naturally my earnest wish to prevent such disturbances. And I then went on to say that, should she not submit to my arrangements, I proposed surrendering Fatma entirely to her relatives; and with this proposition the Khalifa appeared perfectly satisfied.

There was, however, no truth in this statement, for since Saadalla had entertained and turned out his visitors I had seen no one; fearing to betray my intentions to the Khalifa, I waited some time longer, and then sent Fatma el Beida to her mother, whose whereabouts Saadalla had at length discovered, and I instructed the lady to stay with her mother until I should send for her. A few days afterwards, I sent a few clothes to mother and daughter, and a small sum of money, with a message that she was free, and no longer under any obligations to me. Of course I told the Khalifa what I had done, reiterating that I was most anxious to have nothing to do with people who were strangers to him and to me; and in this he saw an additional proof of my anxiety to obey his orders.

About a month later, the mother came to see me, and asked my permission to marry her daughter to one of her relatives. I agreed to this proposition with the greatest alacrity; and I left Fatma el Beida the mother of a happy family in Omdurman.

CHAPTER XIV.

MAHDIST OCCUPATION OF THE SOUTHERN PROVINCES.

The Mahdist Expedition to Equatoria--The Fate of the Remnant of Emin's Garrison--The Campaign against the Shilluks--Tokar re-captured--Death of Osman Wad Adam--Dissensions in Dongola--The Fall of Khaled.

Karamalla, from whom Osman Wad Adam had taken away all his Bazingers and female slaves, and who was now in a state of poverty in Omdurman, had, whilst Emir of the Bahr el Ghazal Province, advanced to the vicinity of the White Nile, and had worried Emin Pasha. Fortunately for the latter, Karamalla had been recalled; and the Bahr el Ghazal Province having been abandoned, no news had been received from Equatoria for a long time, and those merchants who were engaged in the grain trade brought little information from any of the countries south of Fashoda. The Khalifa, who was always turning over in his mind how he could increase his revenue, had heard of the richness of these countries in ivory and slaves, and, in consequence, had decided to organise an expedition to attack and take possession of them; but, as the undertaking was a risky one and success doubtful, he hesitated to involve in it his relatives or his tribe; he therefore nominated Omar Saleh, who had been educated amongst the Taaisha tribe, as chief of the expedition, which was composed for the most part of tribes of the Nile valley,--Jaalin and Danagla. Three steamers were now manned, as well as eight sailing-vessels filled with cargo, consisting princ.i.p.ally of Manchester goods, beads, etc.; and Omar Saleh was given a force of some rifles and five hundred spearmen. The Khalifa sent letters to Emin Pasha, including one which I was obliged to sign, in which I called upon him to surrender; George Stambuli, who had formerly been Emin Pasha's private agent in Khartum, was also obliged to write a letter. At this time, the Shilluks were in considerable force; and as they did not owe allegiance to the Khalifa, Omar Saleh was instructed to pa.s.s by Fashoda as quickly as possible, and only to defend himself in case of attack. The expedition quitted Omdurman in July, 1890, pa.s.sed Fashoda without difficulty; and after that Omar had no further opportunity of reporting on his position. It was not till a year had elapsed, and the Khalifa was beginning to get uneasy, and was considering how he could procure information, that a steamer arrived with some ivory and a quant.i.ty of slaves, the captain of which gave a full account of the progress and position of the expedition. The Egyptian garrison of Reggaf had surrendered, and some of the officers of that place had been sent to Duffile, with orders to seize Emin Pasha, whose soldiers had mutinied, and hand him over to Omar Saleh. After the departure of the party from Reggaf, a rumour had been circulated amongst the Mahdists that they had been deceived by the officers, and that it was the intention of the latter, on their arrival at Duffile, to join with the garrison of that place and attack Omar Saleh; he therefore seized the officers and men who had remained behind, threw them into chains, and distributed their property and slaves amongst his followers.

The officers who had gone to Duffile had really intended to capture Emin, who had in the meantime left with Stanley; and, hearing of what had happened to their wives and property, they now collected the soldiers who, on Emin's departure had created a sort of military republic, and with them marched towards Reggaf. The Mahdists, getting information of this, met them on the road; and a fight ensued, in which Omar Saleh was victorious. The officers were killed; but most of the men succeeded in beating a retreat towards Duffile followed by the Mahdists, who attacked the position, but were driven off and forced to retire. In spite of this victory, great dissensions prevailed amongst the men; and, eventually, they dispersed in bands throughout the province, in order to gain their own livelihood. The Khalifa, rejoicing at Omar Saleh's success, and his cupidity excited by the exaggerated accounts of Wad Badai, who had arrived on the steamer, now gave instructions for another expedition to be equipped, with which he despatched Ha.s.sib Wad Ahmed and Elias Wad Kanuna, and took advantage of the occasion to rid himself of many characters which were obnoxious to him. From that date, Reggaf became a colony for the deportation of convicts, and of persons whose presence in Omdurman was considered dangerous to the state.

Several persons who had been accused of theft, and incarcerated in the Saier, were handed over to Wad Kanuna, who, at the same time, had all persons suspected of leading an immoral life seized, thrown into chains, and sent up to Reggaf; the opportunity was made the most of by several of the Emirs and other influential people to rid themselves of any persons whom they thought dangerous or disagreeable to them. The two chiefs also took advantage of the occasion to visit all the villages on the river bank between Omdurman and Kawa, and ruthlessly seize the people, under the pretext that they belonged to this category, and had been sentenced by the Khalifa to transportation; they could only regain their freedom by the payment of a considerable sum of money to the two Emirs, who continued their depredations until they reached the Shilluk and d.i.n.ka country, the inhabitants of which they feared too much to attempt such outrages on them.

From merchants who had gone to Fashoda in the years 1889 and 1890 to obtain grain, we had heard a good deal about the people who lived in these countries. The districts in close proximity to the river were mostly inhabited by the Shilluks and d.i.n.kas, who, untrammelled by the despotic tyranny of the Khalifa, lived a quiet and undisturbed life in the midst of their families. They were ruled over by a descendant of the Mek (King) of the old Shilluk royal family, who had certain restrictive rights over his subjects, and, with his own interest always to the fore, permitted commercial relations with the Mahdists, avoiding at the same time any actual allegiance to the Khalifa, to whom he did not pay tribute. Wad Badai, who had had sufficient opportunities of seeing the wealth of the country between Fashoda and Reggaf, now gave it as his opinion that the Khalifa would considerably profit by its acquisition.

At this time, Zeki Tummal was at Gallabat with his army, which, owing to famine, had considerably decreased in numbers, though he had done his best to maintain it at the expense of the local population; he had, moreover, made constant raids on the Amhara country. But now the condition of the district had become so poor that he had great difficulties in finding sufficient supplies for his men, with whom he was unusually strict, punishing them most rigorously for the most trivial offences; and on this account he was not only unpopular amongst them, but also amongst his Emirs. He now received instructions from the Khalifa to proceed to the Shilluk country; and, marching to Kawa, where he embarked, he went direct to Fashoda. The King of the Shilluks, being under the impression that Zeki's steamers were on their way to Reggaf, was much surprised when the Emir suddenly landed; the Mek fled, was pursued, captured, and, having refused to disclose the hiding-place of the money he had received in exchange for the grain, was promptly executed. The Shilluks, however, who are the finest and bravest of the Sudanese Black tribes, collected both north and south of Fashoda, and defended their liberty and their homes with magnificent courage and resolution; but Zeki's men, used to constant fighting, and armed with Remington rifles, were almost invariably victorious. It was not, however, until after many b.l.o.o.d.y fights, in which the Shilluks, armed only with their lances, frequently broke the squares and inflicted considerable loss on the soldiers, that they had at last to admit they were beaten. They dispersed, with their families, throughout the country, but were pursued in all directions by Zeki, who captured large numbers of them. The men he invariably put to the sword; but the women, young girls, and children were embarked on the steamers, and despatched to Omdurman. Here the Khalifa ordered the young boys to be taken charge of by his mulazemin, by whom they were to be brought up, whilst most of the girls he kept for himself, or distributed amongst his followers and special adherents. The remainder were sent to the Beit el Mal, where they were publicly sold; but thousands of these poor creatures succ.u.mbed to fatigue, want, and the change of climate. Unused to life in this squalid city, these wild Blacks were huddled together in wretched quarters, and eventually found homes amongst the poorest cla.s.s of the population. It was no uncommon occurrence for a girl to be sold as a slave at the rate of from eight to twenty dollars (Omdurman currency).

When Zeki left Gallabat, the Emir Ahmed Wad Ali took his place, and his brother Hamed Wad Ali was nominated Emir of Ka.s.sala. Avaricious to a degree, he mercilessly robbed the people of their property and cattle, with the result that the eastern Arab tribes, such as the Hadendoa, Halenga, Beni Amer, etc., who had really captured Ka.s.sala for the Mahdi, now revolted, and, wandering eastwards in the direction of Ma.s.sawa, placed themselves under the protection of the Italians. Thus it was that this once thickly populated country became almost denuded of inhabitants. Amongst others, the once powerful Shukria tribe, which had suffered terribly during the famine year, was now almost extinct; whilst the fertile district of Ka.s.sala was almost completely deserted, and the garrison there had the greatest difficulty in maintaining itself.

The Khalifa, alarmed at the progress of the Italians from Ma.s.sawa, now looked upon Ka.s.sala as the mainstay of his authority in these districts.

He was furious with his cousin, Hamed Wad Ali, whom he accused of having ruined the country, and recalled him to Omdurman, where he was ordered to attend prayers in the mosque five times daily; and he replaced him at Ka.s.sala by Abu Girga, who had hitherto been with Osman Digna.

Osman Digna, who had been made responsible for the government of the Eastern Sudan, had been successful in subjugating most of the Arab tribes; and, through them, he had for several years been a menace to Suakin. He had had several engagements with the Government troops; and, on one occasion, Sir Herbert Kitchener, the present Sirdar of the Egyptian Army, had been severely wounded whilst making an attack on his camp at Handub. Eventually, the Government sent an expedition which drove him out of the position he had taken up to besiege Suakin; and he now made his headquarters at Tokar, where he remained for some years, making constant incursions in the vicinity of Suakin, and harrying the friendly tribes of which the Amarar was the princ.i.p.al; but, tired of this constant fighting, and irritated by Osman's undue severity, the local tribes began to desert the cause, and not a few of them became actually hostile to the Khalifa's authority. Informed of this state of things Abdullahi, more anxious to defend his newly acquired realm than to occupy himself in propagating the Mahdist doctrine, instructed Osman Digna not to go too far, and sent Mohammed Wad Khaled to him with this message. The latter, after the confiscation of his property at Bara, had been kept for more than a year in chains in Kordofan; he had then been brought to Omdurman, had received the Khalifa's pardon, and had received back a small portion of his property. For years, he had said his prayers daily in the mosque under the Khalifa's eye, and had apparently broken off all relations with his relatives, whom he accused of unfairness and ingrat.i.tude; but, as usual, his astuteness had not failed him: he was well aware of the Khalifa's hostility to all the Mahdi's relatives, and that was the reason he so studiously avoided all contact with them; hence his nomination as the Khalifa's personal representative with Osman Digna. In this mission he was most successful; and, having completed it, he was instructed to proceed to Abu Hamed, and report on the general condition of the Ababda tribes, who were subject to the Egyptian Government, but who were at the same time in close relationship with the Mahdist tribes of the Berber Province. Khaled's mission, however, did not have any lasting effect on Osman Digna; for, a few weeks after his departure, the Egyptian troops, under Holled Smith Pasha, attacked Tokar, and utterly routed Osman, who fled to the Atbara. The Khalifa, who had been informed by Osman that he was about to be attacked, awaited the result with the greatest anxiety; but he openly declared to his followers that he had not the slightest doubt that victory was insured; when, therefore, the news came of Osman's utter defeat and flight, he was greatly upset. Councils of war were at once held, for it was feared the Government troops would advance towards Ka.s.sala and Berber, both of which places were only weakly held; consequently, instructions were issued to the commanders of these places that, should the troops advance, they should fall back on Metemmeh, where it was his intention to make a fortified camp. Great, however, was his relief when he received news that the Government had contented itself with the re-capture of Tokar. The loss of this district was undoubtedly a very heavy blow to him, and left open to the tribes friendly to the Government the roads leading to both Ka.s.sala and Berber. A few months later, Osman Digna, who had taken up a position on the high ground south of Berber, with the remnant of his force, suffered greatly from want of food, and was obliged to disperse his men over the country; he therefore received orders to proceed to Berber with his Emirs, and, having obtained new clothing, he and the newly nominated Emir of Berber, Zeki Osman, were summoned to Omdurman. Here he was received in a friendly manner by the Khalifa, who, convinced of his fidelity and trustworthiness, consoled him about his defeat, and, after treating him honourably for a few weeks, sent him back with some horses, camels, and women to the Atbara, where he was instructed to make a camp and agricultural settlement, and collect his scattered forces.

At this time, only Eastern Darfur remained subject to Osman Wad Adam.

The country had been almost depopulated by famine, and this Emir now decided to advance against Dar Tama and Ma.s.salit; but, on the frontier, he encountered such severe opposition that he began to think the undertaking too dangerous. He was attacked in his zariba by the natives, who, armed only with small spears, forced their way in; and he had to thank his Remington rifles and the Sheikhs who were with him, for a dearly earned victory; had he been attacked on the line of march, he would almost certainly have been annihilated. His heavy losses considerably delayed his march; and, ere he could obtain reinforcements, a severe epidemic of typhoid fever broke out amongst his men, and he was forced to retire; falling ill himself on the march, he died two days after his arrival at Fasher. His loss was a great blow to the Khalifa, who looked on his young cousin (he was barely twenty years of age) as a courageous leader who paid careful attention to the wants of his men, and had done much to increase the strength and number of the Mahdist forces; he invariably sent to the Khalifa the fair share of the booty, and disinterestedly divided the remainder amongst his people, keeping only for himself what sufficed for his immediate wants. He was a magnificent rider, was most popular with every one, and avoided leading an effeminate and enervating existence; for long after his death he was looked upon as a fine example of a bold and courageous Arab. He was succeeded in the command of Darfur by another of the Khalifa's youthful relatives, Mahmud Wad Ahmed, who was a great contrast to his predecessor: he thought only of enriching himself; his sole pleasure consisted in leading a life of debauchery with women of evil repute, dancers, and singers, and he took a special delight in all their unseemly ways. A mutiny soon broke out amongst his men, which was suppressed with the utmost severity, and resulted in a considerable weakening of his forces.

Yunes, who, since his despatch to Dongola, had always been considered Nejumi's superior, now attached to his councils Arabi Wad Dafalla and Mussaid; but, as each one was bent entirely on enriching himself as rapidly as possible, differences soon broke out, for the country was quite unable to sustain the strain of overburdened taxation. Mussaid and Arabi complained to the Khalifa that Yunes allowed his Emirs to govern the country entirely according to their own ideas, with the result that prices were continually rising; and, in consequence of this report, he was recalled from Dongola.

This province being adjacent to the Egyptian frontier, large numbers of the inhabitants had emigrated to Egypt; and, as the Egyptian garrison at Wadi Haifa was being constantly reinforced, the Khalifa, dreading an attack, insisted on a more lenient treatment of the people. He therefore appointed Khaled as Yunes's successor, as he was convinced that his character and capabilities exactly suited him for this post, and instructed him that he should tax the people in accordance with the number of the sakias (water-wheels) and date-palms; but not being entirely without suspicion of Khaled's behaviour, he ordered a detachment of his own men, armed with rifles, to be placed under Arabi Wad Dafalla, whilst the spearmen of his own tribe were made over to Mussaid.

The natural outcome of these arrangements was renewed dissension.

Khaled, anxious to increase the revenue of the country without augmenting taxation, began filling up vacant posts with men of his own choice, whilst Arabi and Mussaid did their utmost to nominate their own relatives and friends; failing to arrange matters with Khaled, they now began to make the most exorbitant demands, with which he could not possibly comply, and, from dissensions, they came to insults, and very nearly to blows, the two parties being actually drawn up facing each other with arms in their hands. Khaled's party was composed princ.i.p.ally of inhabitants of the Nile valley,--Jaalin and Danagla,--whilst that of Arabi and Mussaid was composed of Jehadia and western Arabs. Message after message was despatched to the Khalifa by both sides, whilst actual conflict was prevented by intermediaries and peacefully disposed persons. Abdullahi immediately sent Yunes to take the place of Arabi and Mussaid, who were recalled; and, immediately after they had arrived, he sent instructions to Khaled to appear before him in Omdurman, to be present, he said, at the punishment of Arabi and Mussaid; but no sooner had he reached the capital than he was arraigned in court with his antagonists. The judges consisted of the Khalifa as President, and a number of Kadis and devoted Emirs as members; Khaled was accused of having spoken disparagingly of his master and relatives, by saying that they had been the cause of the ruin of the country. The Khalifa's brother Yakub was as usual at the bottom of this intrigue, and there is no doubt the Khalifa himself regretted having given Khaled so influential a position; he therefore gladly seized this opportunity of getting rid of him. During the proceedings a letter arrived from Yunes (who had beforehand received Yakub's private instructions) to the effect that whilst the parties were mediating, Khaled had clandestinely concealed six boxes of ammunition, which he intended to send to his relatives in Omdurman. Before the arraignment, the Khalifa had privately arranged the verdict, and of course no one dared to take the part of the accused; he was found guilty, sentenced to imprisonment for an indefinite period, and was hurried off to the Saier, where he was kept in solitary confinement. Curiously enough, an explanation of the Khalifa's action appeared in an Arabic newspaper published in Cairo, in which an extract from the Italian paper "La Riforma" had been published to the effect that Khaled had been in communication with the Egyptian Government for the surrender of the province with which he had been entrusted. In consequence of this, the Khalifa again a.s.sembled the judges, showed them the newspaper as a proof of Khaled's treachery; and he was at once condemned to be executed. The Khalifa, however, declared that he was most anxious not to cause the death of one of the Mahdi's relatives and a descendant of the Prophet, he therefore commuted the sentence to imprisonment for life. His magnanimity on this occasion was of course praised on all sides, whilst he himself rejoiced that he had for ever ridden himself of the only one of the Mahdi's relatives of whose knowledge and astuteness he was justly in considerable awe. He now used Khaled's treachery as a handle by which to irritate the Ashraf in general; and lost no opportunity of doing all he could to weaken their cause, and reduce them to a position of impotence, with the result that an insurrection eventually broke out in Omdurman, which ended in the complete success of the plans which Abdullahi had long since prepared.

CHAPTER XV.

DISSENSION AND DISCORD.

The Revolt of the Ashraf--Flight of Father Ohrwalder and the Two Sisters--The Khalifa revenges himself on the Ashraf--The Seizure and Execution of the Mahdi's Uncles--Zeki Tummal's return to Omdurman laden with Booty--Khalifa Sherif Arrested--"Where there is no Fire, there is no Smoke"--I change my Quarters--Sad News from Austria--The Khalifa falls Ill--The Story of the Bird-messenger--The Fall of Zeki Tummal--The Battle of Agordat--The Capture of Ka.s.sala--The Fate of Kadi Ahmed--The Congo Free State in Equatoria and Bahr el Ghazal--I refuse to marry the Khalifa's Cousin.

The Khalifa Mohammed Sherif, in conjunction with two of the Mahdi's sons, who were scarcely twenty years of age, and many of his relatives, now agreed amongst themselves to shake off the hated yoke of Khalifa Abdullahi and seize the reins of government. They secretly elaborated their plans in Omdurman, and gradually took into their confidence several of their friends and fellow-tribesmen. They also despatched letters to the Danagla living in the Gezira, whom they invited to come to Omdurman and join them; but one of the Jaalin Emirs betrayed them. He had been bound over by an oath to tell only his brother or best friends; and he at once informed the Khalifa, saying that he considered him his best friend. Apprised of the conspiracy, Abdullahi at once made counter arrangements; but the Ashraf, warned by their spies of the Khalifa's secret orders and doings, realised that their plot had been discovered, and immediately collected in that part of the town just north of the Khalifa's house, prepared for the fray. All the Ashraf and Danagla in Omdurman a.s.sembled in the houses in the vicinity of the Mahdi's tomb; and the sailors and most of the boats' crews joined them, saying that they were ready to fight and conquer for the sake of the religion which the Khalifa had abused. The arms which had been secretly hidden were now brought out and distributed. They numbered scarcely a hundred Remington rifles, a small quant.i.ty of ammunition, and a few elephant guns. Ahmed Wad Suleiman behaved like one demented. He declared that he had seen the Prophet and the Mahdi, who a.s.sured him of the victory of his party; and he urged forward the commencement of hostilities. Even the Mahdi's widows, who, after his death, had been kept strictly locked up in their houses by the Khalifa, were not allowed to see any one, and were given scarcely sufficient food to keep them alive, longed for the conflict, hoping that their position would be ameliorated. Indeed the Um el Muminin (The Mother of the Believers), the Mahdi's princ.i.p.al widow, girded a sword round her waist, with the intention of taking a part in this Holy War. Whilst all this was going on at night, and within scarcely a hundred yards of the Khalifa's house, he himself was quietly taking his precautions.

It was on a Monday evening, after prayers, that the Khalifa summoned his special mulazemin, and, in a few words, informed us of the intentions of the Ashraf. He instructed us to arm ourselves as best we could, and on no account to quit our posts in front of the gate. Ammunition was served out to the Black mulazemin Jehadia, and they were ordered to take up positions in the streets leading to the houses of the rebels, and cut off any reinforcements which might attempt to join them. Upwards of a thousand rifles were distributed amongst the Taaisha Arabs, who were posted in the open s.p.a.ce between the Mahdi's tomb and the Khalifa's house, and also along the enclosure of the latter. The Black troops, under the command of Ahmed Fedil, took up a position in the middle of the mosque, and there awaited further orders; and here also were posted the infantry spearmen and cavalry under the command of Yakub. Khalifa Ali, whose people were suspected of sympathising with the rebels, was ordered to occupy the northern portion of the city, and cut off all communication in that direction.

When the sun arose, the mutineers were completely surrounded; and they had now to choose between fighting and surrendering. Before, however, any blows were exchanged, the Khalifa despatched his Kadi, accompanied by Sayed Mekki, to Khalifa Sherif and the Mahdi's sons, reminding them of their late father's proclamation, and of the words he had spoken before his death. At the same time, he instructed the Kadi to inquire into their grievances, which he promised to rectify, if it was possible for him to do so. The curt answer to the Khalifa was that they preferred to fight. Abdullahi had given strict injunctions to all his Emirs to abstain, as far as possible, from blows, and only to defend themselves in the event of a sudden attack. He was most anxious to quell the insurrection by conciliatory measures, as he fully realised that, if a fight ensued in which there was little doubt he would be victorious, Omdurman would almost certainly be sacked and ruined. He was well aware that the western Arab tribes would gladly seize the occasion to satisfy their ruling pa.s.sion for murder and plunder; their one desire would be to obtain all the loot they could, and to this end to spare neither friend nor foe, with the result that, in all probability, they would fight amongst themselves, and then go off to their own country, which they had quitted with considerable reluctance. Once more he sent the Kadi to the insurgents, who returned with a similar reply.

Personally, I longed for the fight, for I had only my life to lose, and that was in daily peril. I had before me the example of Ibrahim Adlan; and I knew that Abdullahi had no regard for the lives of his best and truest friends. Internal fighting must result in the weakening of my enemies, and that alone would have been a source of satisfaction to me; moreover, in the confusion which must arise, I might find an occasion to regain my liberty, and possibly I might be able to exercise some influence over the former Government troops, who I knew were much dissatisfied with their present treatment. Under such abnormal circ.u.mstances, it was impossible to frame any distinct plan of action.

My desire was that a fight should take place, and that I should make as much capital out of it as I could for my own personal benefit.

Some of the most excited of the mutineers now began firing, and some of those on our side, contrary to orders, replied; but it was by no means a fight,--merely a few stray shots. The insurgents did not seem to know what they wanted; their party was undecided, their weapons were bad and out of repair, and so also was the courage of the Ashraf and their followers. After a short time, the firing ceased, and on our side the total loss was five killed. Again the Khalifa sent out a proclamation, which was borne this time by Khalifa Ali Wad Helu, and to this summons the reply was more favourable; they wished to know, they said, the conditions of reconciliation; and they were then told to name their proposals. The negotiations continued all that day and far into the night. They began again the following day, and, to my great regret, a clear understanding was arrived at, and was agreed to by the Khalifa under a solemn oath: he promised complete forgiveness to all who had taken part in the insurrection, to give to Khalifa Mohammed Sherif a position worthy of his dignity, and a seat in Council, to allow him to again take possession of the standards which, after Nejumi's death, had been laid aside, and to collect volunteers under them, and promised pecuniary support from the Beit el Mal to the Mahdi's relatives, in accordance with Sherif's proposals. In return for these concessions, the insurgents agreed to give up all their arms, and submit unconditionally to the Khalifa's orders. The agreement was now ratified, and the terms of peace concluded by the delegates on both sides; but somehow no one seemed in any hurry to execute them. On the following Friday morning, the leaders of the insurgents came themselves before the Khalifa, and obtained a renewal of the promises he had made, in return for which they gave fresh attestations of loyalty; and, on the same afternoon, Khalifa Sherif and the Mahdi's sons approached Abdullahi. Peace was now fully concluded, and the cavalry and infantry, which had been with us day and night since the disturbances began, were permitted to leave the mosque and return to their quarters; but, as the arms had not yet been handed over, the jehadia and mulazemin were ordered to remain at their posts.

On Sunday afternoon, I had sent one of my servants to the Missionary Father, Joseph Ohrwalder, to inquire after him, and he had found his door closed; I had thoughtlessly made inquiries about him of his neighbours, the Greeks and some of the former merchants who, as my servant told me, had made a most careful search for him, but had been unable to trace him or the Missionary Sisters who had been with him. It at once flashed through my mind that possibly, during the disturbances, he might have found some trusty persons who had undertaken to effect his escape; and so it eventually transpired. Before evening prayer, the Emir of the Muslemania (Europeans who had been forcibly made to adopt Mohammedanism), and the Syrian George Stambuli anxiously came and asked to be taken before the Khalifa, as they had something of considerable importance to tell him. The Khalifa, fully occupied with matters which he considered of great importance, ordered them to wait at the mosque; and, after night prayers, he asked them what they wanted. With trembling voices, they informed him that Yusef el Gasis (Joseph the Priest) was missing since yesterday, also the women who were with him. Very much annoyed, the Khalifa at once summoned Nur el Gereifawi, the Emin Beit el Mal, and Mohammed Wahbi, the Prefect of the Police, and commanded them to do all in their power to overtake the fugitives and bring them back to Omdurman, dead or alive. It was fortunate for the poor Greeks that the Khalifa was so much occupied with other matters or he would--as Ohrwalder had lived amongst them--have arrested many and confiscated their property. Luckily, however, on the day of the outbreak, all the camels had been sent into the districts in order to bring in the troops; and Gereifawi and Wahbi could only procure three camels for the pursuit of Ohrwalder, who knew that the success of his flight depended on its rapidity. From the depth of my heart I hoped he might succeed. He had suffered a great deal, and had borne it with Christian fort.i.tude and patience. I now felt completely deserted; he was the only man with whom I was intellectually on a par, and with whom I could--though very rarely--talk a few words in my mother tongue.

The following day, I was summoned before the Khalifa, who angrily reproached me for Ohrwalder's flight. "He is one of your own race, and is in communication with you; why did you not draw my attention to its possibility, so that I might have taken precautions? I am positive you knew of his intention to escape," said he. "Sire, pardon me!" said I; "how could I know of his intention to escape, and how could I tell you that he had done so? Since the outbreak of the revolt attempted by your G.o.d-forsaken enemies, and which, thanks to the Almighty, you have now defeated by your wisdom, I have not moved day or night from my post. Had I known that he was a traitor, I should have at once told you of it." To this he angrily replied, "No doubt your Consul arranged for him to be taken away from here."

Amongst the last letters which I had received, was one written in Arabic from the Austro-Hungarian Consul-General, Von Rosty, to the Khalifa, in which he thanked him for the kind treatment of the members of the former Catholic Mission, and, at the same time, asked his permission to send them a messenger, for whom he begged a free pa.s.s, as they were under Austrian protection, and as His Majesty the Emperor had a special regard for them. The Khalifa had shown me the letter, which he had left unanswered; but from that day he had looked upon the members of the Mission as my compatriots, and was now convinced that they had been a.s.sisted to escape by the aid of the Consul-General. I now remarked to the Khalifa that possibly merchants belonging to the frontier tribes, and who often came to Omdurman, might have taken advantage of the disturbances in order to help Ohrwalder and the Sisters to escape, so as to obtain some pecuniary reward for themselves. Abdullahi, who was still much pre-occupied with the revolt, came round to my opinion; and, after admonishing me to remain perfectly loyal, he dismissed me.