THE KHALIFA DECIDES TO CONQUER ABYSSINIA.
Events subsequent to the fall of Khartum--Capture of Gedaref and
Galabat--Dervishes defeated by Abyssinians at Galabat--Abu Anga's
victorious expedition to Tagalla--His triumphant return to
Omdurman--The Khalifa's grand review--Destruction of the Gehena
tribe--The Khalifa decides to send Abu Anga's army to conquer
Abyssinia--The battle of Dabra Sin--Abu Anga sacks Gondar--The
victorious Dervishes return to Galabat--Rejoicings at Omdurman.
The preceding pages have given a glimpse of Omdurman, the new Dervish
capital of the Sudan; let us now turn briefly to the military events
which had occurred since the fall of Khartum.
Whilst Khartum was besieged on all sides, so also were the various other
garrisons still holding out, closely beset. Gedaref, also known as Suk
Abu Sin, the name of the patriarchal sheikh of the Shukrieh tribe, was
situated in the midst of a fertile plain which produced such quantities
of corn that it was the common saying, three camel-loads could be sold
for half a dollar. The ground was so productive that anything could be
grown. There was no want of water. The Greeks and several Egyptians had
made gardens, in which there was found every description of fruit-tree;
grapes grew in abundance, and were of particularly good quality; they
were to be had all the year round; for it was of no consequence in what
month the vines were pruned. Quantities of sesame were also grown as
well as a special kind of dhurra, with a sweet stalk, from which a
substance something like honey was extracted. Water-melons, cotton,
tobacco, and all sorts of vegetables were grown in the greatest
profusion, and everything was of exceptionally good quality.
The garrison of Gedaref consisted of only two hundred men, and on being
summoned by the Jaalin to surrender, they did so, in April 1884. This is
hardly to be wondered at, for the inhabitants of Gedaref are, for the
most part, Jaalin, and resistance would, under such circumstances, have
been next to impossible. The principal merchants were permitted to keep
their goods, and the change of hands did not, for the moment, greatly
alter the situation; but we shall see, later, what became of this rich
and valuable province after a prolonged Dervish occupation.
As regards Galabat, the difficulties were considerably greater. This
town was situated about six days' journey from Gedaref, and was the
residence of the well-known Takruri, Saleh Bey Shanga, who was Mamur of
the district. This brave official remained loyal to the Government
throughout, and was bitterly opposed to Mahdiism. He succeeded in
gaining the friendship of the neighbouring Abyssinian tribes, and,
through their assistance, inflicted great losses on the Dervishes. In
November 1884, he severely defeated the besieging Jaalin; but a few days
later, the Dervishes, being heavily reinforced, beset him very closely.
Through the intermediary of the English, King John sent a relieving
force of Abyssinians, which reached the vicinity of Galabat on the 27th
of January, 1885; and making known their approach to Saleh, the latter
made a sortie, while at the same time the Dervishes were heavily
attacked by the Abyssinians, who drove them off, thus enabling the
entire garrison, men, women, and children, to escape; they marched _viâ_
Gondar to Massawa, under the protection of an Abyssinian force. Galabat
was subsequently occupied by the Dervishes, who collected here in great
force under the Emir Wad Arbab.
Meanwhile, Saleh Bey, who was now staying with Ras Adal, the chief of
Amhara, was not idle, and was continually urging him to take possession
of Galabat; he was shortly afterwards joined by the Fiki Medawi,
formerly a wild, fanatical adherent of the Mahdi, and who, together with
Abu Girgeh, had been one of the first to lay siege to Gordon in Khartum;
this man, after the Mahdi's death, began to find out that he had been
following an imposture, and fled from Omdurman; he stayed in Abyssinia
for a time, and eventually reached Cairo. Abdullah was furious at his
flight, and put a number of his friends in chains, believing that Fiki
Medawi had been instrumental in pushing on Ras Adal to attack Galabat.
Shortly after the festival of the "Three holy kings," in commemoration
of the baptism of our Saviour in Jordan, known as "Ghittas," which means
immersion (on this occasion--the 5th of January--a cross is always
immersed in the river); Ras Adal, having collected a large army,
amounting, it is said, to 100,000 men, of whom 20,000 were horsemen,
advanced across the mountains and descended on Galabat.
Sheikh Egeil, of the Hamran Arabs, who had always been loyal to the
Egyptian Government, and had combated Mahdiism continuously, also joined
Ras Adal, and entered Dervish territory. Wad Arbab, who had received
full information of the Abyssinian movements, was awaiting their attack,
strongly entrenched within Galabat. He had 16,000 well-seasoned troops,
mostly Jaalin, and a quantity of rifles and ammunition. In a few minutes
the Abyssinian cavalry, dashing down with wild impetuosity, completely
surrounded Wad Arbab; the fight did not last long; the Dervishes were
driven out, pursued in all directions, and Galabat was soon in flames.
Arbab's men could not face the wild rush of the Abyssinians, and fell in
great numbers; the high wind caused the flames to spread with terrible
rapidity, and soon the powder magazine blew up with a terrific report,
burying hundreds in its ruins; amongst these was a Greek who had come
from Sawakin the year before to Omdurman, where he was imprisoned for a
time, then released, and came to Galabat, hoping to escape into
Abyssinia, just a few days before this fight which took place in
January 1887. The Abyssinians captured a large number of women and
children, whom they dragged off as slaves.
A few months prior to this action, Gustav Klootz had died in Galabat. He
had left Omdurman in September 1886, for Galabat, intending to escape
into Abyssinia; but having no money, he was forced to walk the entire
distance, and the great fatigue he had undergone made him seriously ill;
he lingered on for a time, but eventually died; and perhaps it was
fortunate that he did die, for only a few days afterwards an order
arrived from the Khalifa Abdullah at Gedaref, ordering him to be thrown
into chains and brought back to Omdurman, where a miserable death
awaited him.
Whilst the Abyssinians were attacking Galabat, Sheikh Egeil fell upon
Doka, a place situated between Galabat and Gedaref, which he succeeded
in capturing, and putting its inhabitants to the sword. The Abyssinians
now returned to their own country, after having sacked and pillaged
Galabat, which they left absolutely empty.
The disaster at Galabat was a great blow to the Dervishes; Abdullah now
appointed his nephew Yunis as emir of the district, and ordered him to
reoccupy the town. Yunis, on his return from Wad el Abbas, had encamped
south of Omdurman Fort, at a place which is still known as Dem Yunis;
his force consisted of about 1,000 men, armed with Remingtons, and 2,000
sword-and spearmen, of whom the majority had been amongst the Mahdi's
original followers at Abba. Abdullah himself now crossed over to
Khojali, and led Yunis's troops for some distance.
The equipment and transport of the force were not expensive items; each
man received about half a dollar; and perhaps that was sufficient, for
the troops always plundered the villages for their food as they went
along. Yunis marched direct to Abu Haraz, on the Blue Nile, and thence
followed the Khor Rahad up to Galabat, which he found quite empty and
deserted. He now settled down, and, to his credit, he occasionally made
raids into Abyssinia, destroyed a few villages and churches, and sent
the ornaments he took to Omdurman. This so delighted the Khalifa that he
dubbed him "Mismar ed Din" (or the "Nail of Religion"), and had special
poems about his deeds sung in his presence.
But soon Yunis abandoned hostilities, and guaranteed free passes to
merchants travelling in the country; the Abyssinians believed in these
assurances of peace, and descended into the Galabat plain at various
times in the year, bringing with them for sale thousands of mules,
donkeys, and horses, also quantities of coffee, garlic, lentils, beans,
wax, and honey. Things went on quite peaceably for some time; but one
day Yunis suddenly fell on all the merchants collected within their
zariba, killed numbers of them, seized their goods, and sent off about
1,000 of them as prisoners to Omdurman. Several died of starvation on
the journey, and on their arrival in Omdurman the remainder were
released, but had to go about the markets begging their bread. It
frequently happened that they would take shelter for the night in the
merchants' empty stalls; and on the latter arriving with their goods in
the morning, they would find their shops full of dead and dying
Abyssinians; afterwards, slaves were left by the merchants to guard the
shops and prevent these miserable creatures from making use of them.
These wretched, gaunt, half-starved people used sometimes to come to us
to beg for food; they knew no Arabic, but knowing that we were
Christians, they would repeat that word, or sometimes "Wad Maryam"
("Mary's child") to excite our pity. Their wretched condition at length
reached the Khalifa's ears, and he ordered the beit el mal to take
charge of them; the emin beit el mal now sent a crier to the market to
warn all Abyssinians that if they came to the beit el mal they would
receive assistance. The poor starving creatures dragged themselves
there, but were still kept two or three days without food; numbers of
them died, and their bodies were thrown into the river, whilst the
remainder were at last given a miserable pittance of dhurra, which
served to keep body and soul together for a time; but these, too, at
length succumbed to starvation; and after that, I never saw an
Abyssinian prisoner again.
In July 1887, Khalifa Abdullah wrote a letter to King John, offering to
make peace, on condition that he would become a Moslem, and that he
would return all the women and children he had captured, but more
especially was he to surrender the persons of Saleh Bey, Fiki Medawi,
and the Sheikh el Egeil. If he refused to accept these terms he must
expect war. King John did not deign to reply.
During the feast of Bairam on the 31st of July, 1887, Khalifa Abdullah
summoned Abu Anga to Omdurman, and here I must give a short description
of this renowned warrior.
Hamdan Abu Anga had been a slave, and had been brought up in the Khalifa
Abdullah's household; he had been well treated by his master, and was
eventually looked upon as a member of the family, a custom which was
formerly in vogue amongst the Baggara, Rizighat, and Taisha tribes. In
fact, these Arabs used not infrequently to give their daughters in
marriage to their slaves. It was amongst the Baggara that Abu Anga had
first learnt to ride on horseback and to go out hunting, and it was from
them that he had acquired such dexterity in handling and throwing
spears, for which he had frequent opportunities in the continual raids
which took place on neighbouring tribes.
Abu Anga had taken part in the campaigns against Zubeir Pasha, by whom
he and his entire family had been captured, but subsequently released.
When the Mahdi declared himself he joined with his master, Abdullah.
During the siege of El Obeid little was known or heard of him, but after
the fall of that city Khalifa Abdullah handed over to him the charge of
all captive soldiers in El Obeid, as well as in other places. The astute
Khalifa had for long had his eye on these blacks, whose fighting powers
he well knew, and he was most desirous to bring them under his direct
control, and utilize them.
Previous to the Hicks Expedition Abu Anga had already secured a number
of them, and they were largely instrumental in compassing the complete
downfall of that ill-fated army. Then, again, his blacks had shown the
greatest bravery in their campaigns against Jebel Dair, when they had
acquired a great name for themselves, and, finally, it was through their
means that Gordon's Fort of Omdurman had been compelled to surrender.
After the fall of Khartum these brave but undisciplined troops, having
no more fighting to do, took to highway robbery. Numbers of them hovered
about in the desert a few hours' distance from Omdurman, and amused
themselves by falling on caravans coming from Kordofan or Berber, and
pillaging and killing to their heart's content. Their depredations
became so constant that the Mahdi decided that he must employ them
somewhere, so he ordered Abu Anga to proceed with them to the still
independent Dar Nuba country, which he was to conquer, and obtain from
thence recruits for his Jehadieh, or Black Army.
But there was also another reason which induced the Mahdi to undertake
this campaign. During the siege of Omdurman a certain Baggara Sheikh, of
Birket, named Noaïa, deserted, and gathering a number of malcontents in
Dar Nuba, he defied the Mahdi's authority. When I was at El Obeid there
were all sorts of strange stories current about the doings of Noaïa, who
had gathered numbers of horsemen from the Howazma and Miserieh tribes,
and had made himself decidedly formidable. All those disappointed
slave-hunters and slave-dealers who--annoyed with the suppression of
their trade by the Egyptian Government--had flocked in numbers to the
Mahdi's standard, now had begun to find out that they were rather worse
off than before, and were, in reality, little better than the Mahdi's
slaves. These people sought every occasion to desert to Noaïa. Abu Anga
therefore received orders to hunt him down and annihilate him. He
collected his men, quitted the now debauched and pleasure-loving
Omdurman, and proceeded to the Tagalla Mountain, at the foot of which he
encamped.
After the death of King Adam, his followers had again thrown off the
Dervish yoke and were now in open revolt; against these Abu Anga
conducted several successful expeditions, and captured numbers of
slaves, but suffered some loss as well. As long as Abu Anga was in the
neighbourhood, Tagalla was more or less in a state of submission; but
the moment he moved off they again broke out into active opposition.
Abu Anga now advanced on Noaïa, whose adherents, alarmed by the presence
of the soldiers, dispersed. These blacks are greatly feared in the
Sudan, not only on account of their great bravery in battle, but also it
is well known that they are merciless to their conquered enemies.
Sheikh Noaïa was eventually secured and thrown into chains, and a few
days later he died of small-pox. Abu Anga attacked almost all the Nuba
mountains; at times he was successful, at other times he suffered
reverses. Tolodi, Gedir, and lastly Naïma, were scenes of bloody
combats, and at the last-named place Abu Anga, in spite of his
artillery--which was commanded by Said Bey Guma--was heavily defeated
and driven back.
One of Abu Anga's most capable assistants was Abdullah Wad Ibrahim, who,
on account of his unparalleled cruelties, made Abu Anga's name a terror
throughout the land. Abu Anga was now recalled from his campaign by
Khalifa Abdullah to take possession of Zogal and his army, who was then
on his way from Darfur to Bara. We have seen how rapidly and skilfully
he carried out this order.
Now all that was left for Abu Anga to do was to punish the mutinous
troops of El Obeid who had killed Sherif Mahmud. Wad Ibrahim was sent on
this duty, and after a severe fight, in which numbers were killed on
both sides, he succeeded in capturing several of the mutineers, whom he
attached to his troops; but some of them escaped to the Nubas, and Wad
Ibrahim proceeded in consequence to Golfan-Naïma, which he besieged,
took, and reduced the inhabitants to slavery; the heads of Bishir and
three other leaders were sent to Omdurman, where they were exposed for a
month on the gallows as a warning to all mutinous-minded persons.
By all these various actions Abu Anga had succeeded in adding
considerably to the numbers of his troops, and he moreover drilled them
constantly and instilled a spirit of discipline which had been hitherto
unknown--thus he raised up a power which it was almost impossible to
defeat. Khalifa Abdullah now sent instructions to Abu Anga to return to
Omdurman in time for the Bairam festival, and at the same time he sent
orders to all the inhabitants of the Gezireh and Nile Valley to collect
at Omdurman for a great review. Abu Anga, as usual, complied with the
order with alacrity, and making forced marches, _viâ_ Tayara, Shatt, and
Om Sadik, he reached Omdurman in a very short time. Abdullah sent
numbers of emirs to meet and welcome him.
In Omdurman the only topic of conversation was about Abu Anga and his
great army. The Khalifa himself also prepared a magnificent reception
for his faithful general, in which he strove to do him all possible
honour. On the night preceding the great festival, criers were sent
through Omdurman announcing that any one who failed to present himself
at the great review the following morning would be seriously dealt with;
this order was willingly complied with, and at the foot of the hills
near Kerreri were assembled enormous crowds, who waited--as the
malcontents said--on the pleasure of that "slave," Abu Anga. The guns
had all been drawn out in line the evening before, and the festival was
ushered in by prolonged salutes.
In the meantime Abu Anga had arrived at Om Sadik, where a careful
inspection was made to see that no one was in possession of unlawful
booty; numbers of female slaves were found, who were subsequently sent
to the beit el mal. He then moved on to his camp near Omdurman, and
prepared to make his formal entry the following morning.
By the time the sun had well risen, the Dervishes were assembled in
endless lines under their various flags. Khalifa Abdullah left his
residence accompanied by his bodyguard; he was mounted on a magnificent
camel, and advanced to the sound of the great onbeïa trumpet. Abu Anga,
mounted on a pony and clad in a casque and coat-of-mail, now advanced to
meet him, and his magnificent figure created no small impression on the
assembled multitudes. His bodyguard, consisting of his very best
soldiers, accompanied him, as well as a number of mukuddums. On
approaching the Khalifa he adroitly dismounted and kissed his hands; he
was warmly greeted, and ordered to mount again.
Then the march past began. Upwards of 31,000 black troops, armed with
Remingtons and formed up in long lines, went by to the sound of drums
and trumpets; but the latter, on which the players attempted to produce
some specially Dervish music, raised the most discordant sounds, which
gave an intensely comic aspect to the whole proceeding. Each emir, with
his flag, rode at the head of his division; the chief emirs were Ibrahim
Wad Abdullah, Nur Angara, Zeki Tummal, and Ibrahim Wad Abu Tagalla. When
the Jehadieh had passed, the sword-and spearmen followed, some 20,000 in
number; then came the inhabitants of Omdurman in countless numbers.
There could not have been less than 60,000.
After the march past all were formed up again, and then the Khalifa,
dismounting from his camel, stood on his sheepskin and conducted
prayers. The shout of "Allahu Akbar" from over 100,000 throats was
impressive in the extreme, and, as the sound rolled down the immense
lines, it was echoed again and again through the hills, lasting for over
a minute after each shout.
On the conclusion of prayers the guns pealed forth salutes, and such
wild fanaticism and enthusiasm prevailed that several men dashed up to
the very muzzles of the guns and were blown to pieces. Of course the
Khalifa announced that the souls of these stupid people had gone
straight to paradise. The salutes over, the lines were once more
inspected, and then all the flags were collected in one place, in the
centre of which stood the Khalifa; this was the signal for the whole
force to gather around and vie with one another in their shouts of
loyalty that they would die a hundred times over for him and his cause.
Khalifa Abdullah became so wildly impressed by the enthusiasm of these
savage hordes that he could scarcely contain himself, and it was as much
as his bodyguard could do to keep the impetuous crowds from crushing him
to death. Numbers were bruised and kicked by the horses; but they were
left quite unnoticed--a mere remark, "Umru Khalas" ("It is the end of
his life"), was all the sympathy these heartless men ever offered.
From that day to this I do not think the Khalifa has ever had such an
ovation. At that time Omdurman was unusually full, trade was brisk, and
it was thought that he would now undertake the invasion of Egypt. But,
as it soon transpired, he had still a good deal of work to do in the
Sudan itself. One enemy he undoubtedly had--this was El Merhdi Abu Rof,
a descendant of the ancient Kings of Sennar and sheikh of the great
Gehena tribe, which, amongst the mass of Arabs allied to the Mahdi, had
persistently held aloof. This tribe possessed a large number of camels
of a curious dark-coloured breed, and also quantities of gray-coloured
cows.
El Merhdi had instigated a purely local movement of his own against the
Government, and had once besieged and set fire to Sennar; long before
Abu Anga's arrival he had shown hostility to the Khalifa, and had
annihilated a number of small Dervish garrisons; his power extended as
far as Karkoj, and he levied taxes on all boats going north. For a long
time the Khalifa had let him alone, but now finding himself in
possession of such an enormous force, he decided to attack El Merhdi,
more especially as at this time his audacity considerably endangered the
navigation of the Blue Nile, from whence Omdurman drew its main supplies
of corn. He therefore despatched Ismail Wad el Andok up the Blue Nile,
while Abdullah Wad Ibrahim was sent up the White Nile.
El Merhdi, attacked thus on both sides, was powerless; he was unable to
withstand the advance of the victorious black troops, and he and almost
all his Arabs were killed. El Merhdi's head was sent to Omdurman, where
it was exposed for a long time on the gallows, and was at last thrown
into the pit in which lay the heads of Bishir and those who had been
slain with him.
Thus one by one did the Khalifa's enemies become subdued. The vengeance
wreaked on the unfortunate Gehena tribe by the Dervishes is almost
beyond description. The property of the survivors was seized, men,
women, and children were dragged off to Omdurman, and there, naked and
helpless, they were left to starve on the river bank. One would see
wretched mothers of three or four children, who looked just like
skeletons, miserably abandoned in a place utterly unknown, and subject
to the insults and indignities of the proud and cruel Dervishes. Numbers
of them, especially children, died of starvation, whilst those who still
had sufficient strength would wander about begging their bread; if any
one had money enough he would buy a waterskin, and would go half a mile
to the river, fill it, carry it back and sell it in the market for a
quarter of a piastre; thus they eked out a miserable existence. Men who
but lately had ridden on good horses and had owned hundreds of camels
were reduced to this mode of gaining their livelihood, whilst poor women
could be seen, with babies at their breasts, toiling under the heavy
weight of a filled waterskin towards the market-place; then they had no
rest, for in the evening they had to grind the dhurra and make a sort of
pap which the poor little mouths of their infants could hardly
masticate; they had but one meal in the twenty-four hours.
It was impossible not to be struck by the mother's love of these poor
people for their offspring, and at the same time to feel bitterly
incensed against the Khalifa and his cruel followers who could thus
intentionally inflict on people of their own race such untold cruelties.
Thousands of Gehena camels were brought to Omdurman and sold at low
prices; thus was the wealth of their country utterly destroyed, and now
the terrible famine, which was so soon to fall upon the land, was close
at hand.
In the meantime Abdullah was considering with his advisers the
desirability of permitting war to break out with Abyssinia. The great
power of which he now felt himself possessed inclined him to war, and of
course the majority of his emirs, whose sole desire was to pander to his
will, agreed with him. Then news reached Yunis that Ras Adal was making
gigantic preparations; this finally decided Abdullah to wage war, and
with this object in view, he despatched his faithful Abu Anga to conduct
the operations.
The three Khalifas, Abu Anga's brother Abdel Maula, who commanded the
Jehadieh in Omdurman, and several other important people embarked on the
steamer and proceeded to the east bank, where Abdullah himself led off
the troops. For some days before, every boat had been requisitioned for
transport, and these were now laden with provisions for the army; but
what with overloading and the strength of the current, several foundered
and numbers of persons were drowned; however, this was of little
consequence, for human life is of small value among the Dervishes.
The troops advanced in divisions along the banks of the Nile, and before
finally taking leave of them the Khalifa addressed Abu Anga and his
emirs, urging them to be ever united, and to keep always before them the
rewards which would be theirs on their return, promising them the divine
help of the Mahdi and a certainty of victory.
This speech was delivered in such an impressive manner that there were
few dry eyes amongst these hardy warriors, and the Khalifa himself was
by no means ignorant of the gravity of the step he had now taken, for
Abyssinia was looked upon as even a more powerful country than Egypt.
Abu Anga followed his troops in a steamer as far as Abu Haraz, near
which the Khor Rahad joins the Nile, and which during the winter is
quite full and navigable almost up to Galabat.
Some time before, Abdullah Wad Ibrahim and Ismail Wad el Andok had been
sent to collect people in the Gezireh; they now joined Abu Anga, whose
entire force numbered 81,000 men. After a short halt at Galabat, Abu
Anga advanced into Abyssinian territory, leaving Wad Ali in Galabat.
Making forced marches, the troops made their way over hills and across
valleys, through the most rugged country. Numbers died of exhaustion,
but still they continued to move on; they met with no opposition, the
villages through which they passed were deserted, and wherever they went
they found provisions in abundance. This magnificent country was a
source of intense astonishment to the Dervishes.
Meanwhile Ras Adal had collected his forces in the great plain of Dabra
Sin, some six days' journey from Galabat, and here he patiently awaited
Abu Anga's advance. As the Dervishes approached, numbers of the Gezireh
troops who could not keep up with the force lagged behind, and were
invariably killed or mutilated by the Abyssinians.
Abu Anga, on arrival on the plain, formed up in battle-array, and
putting himself in the centre of a square composed of his best troops,
he advanced on the Abyssinian camp, which was much extended, and
stretched as far as the eye could reach.
The Abyssinians now attacked in wild disorder; they fought with the
courage of lions, for their religion and fatherland, against the hated
Moslems who had dared to enter their country. The horsemen especially
fought with the most reckless bravery; but Abu Anga's blacks here as
elsewhere showed their sterling fighting qualities; they mowed down the
masses of Abyssinians in thousands with their well-aimed fire, whilst
the latter were vainly endeavouring to break through their solid ranks;
and soon Abu Anga's victory was assured. He had conquered through his
good discipline, the arrangement of his troops, and the galling fire of
the Remingtons, and now the rest of the fight was merely a massacre,
which was continued until the troops were quite tired out. Most of Ras
Adal's principal chiefs had fallen, and amongst the captives was one of
his sons, who was well cared for and sent to Galabat.
The entire camp, with its countless tents, donkeys, and mules, fell into
the hands of the Mahdiists. The captured animals were in such quantities
that the victors could not possibly carry them off, and in consequence
they either hamstrung them or cut their throats. Amongst the other
things captured were two guns.
The road to Gondar, the former capital of Abyssinia, was now clear, and
Abu Anga advanced towards it, hoping that he would secure great
quantities of treasure. It was a march of only thirty miles from the
battlefield, and was soon reached; sacked, plundered, and reduced to
ashes; the churches were pillaged and then burnt; priests were thrown
down from the roof and killed; the population massacred, and women and
children dragged in hundreds into slavery.
Abu Anga only stayed a short time in Gondar, the change of climate had
already caused the death of a number of his troops, and, laden with
booty, he returned to Galabat, which he reached at the end of December.
Meanwhile there was great anxiety in Omdurman. Abdullah could not
conceal his alarm, for it was well known that the Abyssinian army was
very powerful. Abu Anga had crossed the border thirty days before, and
still no news reached Abdullah: those who did not wish the Dervishes
well, rejoiced at the thought that a great part of the army must have
been destroyed, and the anxiety so told on Abdullah, that he was seen to
visibly age in this momentous time. Besides, there was the prophecy of
Mohammed, who had forbidden his followers to make war against the
Abyssinians, unless the latter first provoked it. Abu Anga's expedition
was in direct disobedience to this order, and it was thought that he
must suffer defeat as a punishment, and it was urged that if Abu Anga
returned in safety, then the Prophet Mohammed must be a liar as well as
the Mahdi.
At length the arrival of twelve heads which Abu Anga had sent to Galabat
proved conclusively that a great victory had been won, and now the news
of the destruction of Gondar and the return of Abu Anga's victorious
troops was indeed a welcome relief to the terrible suspense.
This news was followed up soon afterwards by the arrival of numbers of
women and children, and quantities of loot. Several of these miserable
captives had died on the journey, and those who had not been already
sold, had their ears cut off, and were sent to the beit el mal.
Abdullah, without the smallest shame, went himself to the beit el mal,
and chose all the best-looking girls for his harem, and each of the
principal men of his household received an Abyssinian girl as a present.
Abu Anga received great praise at the hands of the Khalifa, and many
verses were made in his honour. Shortly before the victor's arrival in
Omdurman, criers were sent out to say that he should no longer be called
Abu Anga, but Sidi Hamdan, and Abdullah himself went out to meet the
conqueror, and shed tears of joy on seeing him. The booty included
thirty thousand Maria Theresa dollars, of which Khalifa Abdullah at once
took sole possession.