"I succeeded in getting out two more bullets, and then handed the
instruments to the hakims, saying that I had shown them all I knew, and
would now leave the matter in their hands altogether; or would act as
their assistant, if they wished it. I had no fear that harm would come
of it; for, being so frequently engaged in war, I knew that they had,
in a rough way, considerable skill in the treatment of wounds. I had
impressed upon them, while probing the wounds, that no force must be
used, and that the sole object was to find the exact course the ball
had taken.
"As to the amputations, they would probably not be attempted. A
fighting Dervish would rather die than lose a limb; and, were he to die
under an operation, his relatives would accuse the operator of having
killed him.
"I remained at work with them, for two or three days. In nearly half
the cases, they failed to find the course of the ball; but when they
did so, and the wound was not too deep, they generally succeeded in
extracting it. They were highly pleased, and I took great pains to
remain well in the background.
"They were very friendly with me. Their fees were mostly horses, or
carpets, or other articles, in accordance with the means of the
patients; and of these they gave me a portion, together with some
money, which had been looted from the chests carrying silver, for the
purchase of provisions and the payment of troops. Although they made a
pretence of begging me to remain always with them, I refused, saying
that I saw I could no longer be of assistance to them. I could see they
were inwardly pleased. They gave me some more money, and I left them,
saying that I did not, for a moment, suppose that I could tell them
anything further; but that if, at any time, they should send for me, I
would try and recall what I had seen the white hakims do, in such a
case as they were dealing with.
"In the meantime, Saleh was progressing very favourably; and, indeed,
would have been up and about, had I not peremptorily ordered him to
remain quiet.
"'You are doing well,' I said. 'Why should you risk bringing on
inflammation, merely for the sake of getting about a few days earlier?'
"Abdullah was also better, but still extremely weak, and I had to order
that meat should be boiled for some hours, and that he should drink
small quantities of the broth, three or four times a day. Many times a
day women came to me, to ask me to see to their husbands' wounds; and
sometimes the wounded men came to me, themselves. All the serious cases
I referred to the hakims, and confined myself simply to dressing and
bandaging wounds, which had grown angry for want of attention. I always
refused to accept fees, insisting that I was not a hakim, and simply
afforded my help as a friend.
"I had the satisfaction, however, of doing a great deal of good, for in
the medicine chest I found a large supply of plaster and bandages.
Frequently mothers brought children to me. These I could have treated
with some of the simple drugs in the chest, but I refused to do so; for
I could not have explained, in any satisfactory way, how I knew one
drug from another, or was acquainted with their qualities. Still,
although I refused fees, I had many little presents of fowls, fruit,
pumpkins, and other things. These prevented my feeling that I was a
burden upon Saleh, for of course I put them into the general stock.
"So far, I cannot but look back with deep gratitude for the strange
manner in which I have been enabled to avert all suspicion, and even to
make myself quite a popular character among the people of El Obeid.
"One bottle I found in the medicine chest was a great prize to me. It
contained iodine and, with a weak solution of this, I was able to
maintain my colour. I did not care so much for my face and hands, for I
was so darkened by the sun that my complexion was little fairer than
that of many of the Arabs. But I feared that an accidental display, of
a portion of my body usually covered by my garments, would at once
prove that I was a white man. I had used up the stuff that I had
brought with me, when I escaped from the square; and having no means of
procuring fresh stain, was getting uneasy; but this discovery of the
iodine put it within my power to renew my colouring, whenever it was
necessary.
"About a month later. I have been living here quietly, since I last
wrote in this journal. The day after I had done so, the Emir sent for
me, and said he had heard that I had taken bullets out of wounds, and
had shown the two doctors of the town how to do so, by means of
instruments found in a chest that was among the loot brought in from
the battlefield. I repeated my story to him, as to how I had acquired
the knowledge from being in the service of a white hakim, from Cairo,
who was travelling in the desert; and that I had no other medical
knowledge, except that I had seen, in the chest, a bottle which
contained stuff like that the white doctors used in order to put a
patient to sleep, so that they could take off a limb without his
feeling pain.
"'I have heard of such things being done by the Turkish hakims at
Khartoum, but I did not believe them. It is against all reason.'
"'I have seen it done, my lord,' I said. 'I do not say that I could
take off a limb, as they did, but I am sure that the stuff would put
anyone to sleep.'
"'I wish you to put it to the trial,' the Emir said. 'One of my sons
came back, from the battle, with a bullet hole through his hand. The
hakim said that two of the bones were broken. He put bandages round,
and my son said no more about it. He is a man who does not complain of
slight troubles, but yesterday evening the pain became so great that he
was forced to mention it; and when I examined his arm, I found that it
was greatly swelled. Slaves have been bathing it with cold water, ever
since, but the pain has increased rather than diminished.'
"'I will look at it, my lord, but I greatly fear that it is beyond my
poor skill to deal with it.'
"The young man was brought in and, on removing the bandage, I saw that
the wound was in a terrible state, and the arm greatly inflamed, some
distance up the wrist. It was a bad case, and it seemed to me that,
unless something was done, mortification would speedily set in.
"'The two doctors saw it an hour ago,' the Emir went on, 'and they
greatly fear for his life. They told me that they could do nothing, but
that, as you had seen the white hakim do wonderful things, you might be
able to do something.'
"'My lord,' I said, 'it is one thing to watch an operation, but quite
another to perform it yourself. I think, as the doctors have told you,
your son's life is in great danger; and I do believe that, if there
were white doctors here to take off his arm, he might be saved. But I
could not undertake it. The skill to do so is only acquired by long
years of study. How can I, a poor man, know how to do such things? Were
I to attempt and fail, what would you say?--that I had killed your son;
and that, but for me, he might have recovered.'
"'He will not recover,' the Emir said, moodily.
"'What say you, Abu? You have heard what this man says; what do you
think?'
"'I think, Father, that it were well to try. This man has used his
eyes, so well, that he has taken the white man's instruments, and drawn
out bullets from wounds. I feel as if this wound will kill me;
therefore, if the man fails, I shall be none the worse. Indeed, it
would be better to die at once, than to feel this fire burning, till it
burns me up.'
"'You hear what my son says? I am of the same opinion. Do your best.
Should you fail, I swear, by the head of the Prophet, that no harm
shall come to you.'
"The wounded man was a fine young fellow, of three or four and twenty.
"'If it is my lord's will, I will try,' I said; 'but I pray you to bear
in mind that I do so at your command, and without much hope of
accomplishing it successfully. It would, I think, be advisable that the
limb should be taken off above the elbow, so that it will be above the
spot to which the inflammation has extended.'
"The Emir looked at his son, who said:
"'It matters not, Father. 'Tis but my left arm, and I shall still have
my right, to hurl a spear or wield a sword.'
"I need not tell how I got through the operation. Everything required
for it--the inhaler, sponges, straight and crooked needles, and
thread--was in the chest. The young Arab objected to be sent to sleep.
He said it might be well for cowards, but not for a fighting man. I had
to assure him that it was not for his sake, but for my own, that I
wished him to go to sleep; and that if I knew he was not suffering
pain, I might be able to do the thing without my hand trembling; but
that if I knew he was suffering, I should be flurried.
"I insisted that the hakims should be sent for. When they came I called
them to witness that, at the Emir's command, I was going to try to do
the operation I had seen the white doctor perform, although I was but
an ignorant man, and feared greatly that I might fail. I really was
desperately nervous, though at the same time I did feel that, having
seen the operation performed two or three times, and as it was a simple
one, I ought to be able to do it. Of course, I had everything laid
handy. The tourniquet was first put on the arm, and screwed tightly.
Then I administered the chloroform, which took its effect speedily. My
nerves were braced up now, and I do think I made a fair job of
it--finding and tying up the arteries, cutting and sawing the bone off,
and making a flap. A few stitches to keep this together, and it was
done, and to my relief the Arab, who had lain as rigid as a statue,
winced a little when the last stitch was put in.
"This was the point on which I had been most anxious. I was not sure
whether the amount of chloroform he had inhaled might not have been too
strong for him.
"'Do not try to move,' I said, as he opened his eyes and looked round,
as if trying to remember where he was.
"As his eyes fell upon me, he said, 'When are you going to begin?'
"'I have finished,' I said, 'but you must lie quiet, for some time. The
slightest movement now might cause the flow of blood to burst out.'
"The Emir had stood staring at his son's quiet face, as if amazed
beyond the power of speech. Four Dervishes had held the patient's
limbs, so as to prevent any accidental movement. A female slave had
held a large basin of warm water, and another handed me the things I
pointed to. I had begged the hakims to keep their attention fixed on
what I was doing, in order that these also might see how the white
doctor did such things.
"When his son spoke, the Emir gave a gasp of relief. 'He lives,' he
murmured, as if even now he could scarcely believe that this was
possible; and as he put his hand upon my shoulder it trembled with
emotion.
"'Truly the ways of the white infidels are marvellous. Abu, my son,
Allah has been merciful! He must have meant that you should not die,
and thus have sent this man, who has seen the white hakims at work, to
save your life!
"What is to be done now?' he went on, turning to me.
"'He should be raised very gently, and clothes put under his shoulder
and head. Then he should be carried, on the angareb, to the coolest
place in the house. He may drink a little juice of fruit, but he had
best eat nothing. The great thing is to prevent fever coming on. With
your permission I will stay with him, for if one of the threads you saw
me tie, round these little white tubes in the arm, should slip or give
way, he would be dead in five minutes; unless this machine round the
arm is tightened at once, and the tube that carries the blood is tied
up. It would be well that he should have a slave to fan him. I hope he
will sleep.'
"The Emir gave orders for the bed to be carried to the room adjoining
his harem.
"'His mother and his young wife will want to see him,' he said to me,
'and when the danger that you speak of is past, the women will care for
him. You will be master in the room, and will give such orders as you
please.'
"Then he turned off, and walked hastily away. I could see that he had
spoken with difficulty, and that, in spite of his efforts to appear
composed and tranquil, his mouth was twitching, and his eyes moist.
"As soon as the bed had been placed, by my directions, near the open
window, the four Dervishes left the room. The hakims were on the point
of doing so, when I said:
"'I will stay here for a few minutes, and will then come out and talk
this matter over with you. I have been fortunate, indeed, in
remembering so well what I saw. I heard a white hakim explain how he
did each thing, and why, to the sheik of the wounded man's party; and I
will tell you what I remember of it, and you, with your wisdom in these
matters, will be able to do it far better than I.'
"When they had retired, the door leading into the harem opened, and a
woman, slightly veiled, followed by a younger woman and two slave
girls, came in. I stopped her, as she was hurrying towards her son.
"'Lady,' I said, 'I pray you to speak very quietly, and in few words.
It is most important that he should not be excited, in any way, but
should be kept perfectly quiet, for the next two or three days.'
"'I will do so,' she said. 'May I touch him?'
"'You may take his hand in yours, but do not let him move. I will leave
you with him for a few minutes. Please remember that everything depends
upon his not being agitated.'
"I went out and joined the hakims.
"'Truly, Mudil, Allah has given you strange gifts,' one of them said.
'Wonderful is it that you should have remembered so well what you saw;
and more wonderful still is it, that you should have the firmness to
cut and saw flesh and bone, as if they were those of a dead sheep, with
the Emir standing by to look at you!'
"'I knew that his life, and perhaps mine, depended upon it. The Emir
would have kept his oath, I doubt not; but when it became known in the
town that Abu, who is known to all for his bravery and goodness, died
in my hands, it would not have been safe for me to leave this house.'
"I then explained the reason for each step that I took. They listened
most attentively, and asked several questions, showing that they were
intensely interested, and most anxious to be able to perform so
wonderful an operation themselves. They were greatly surprised at the
fact that so little blood flowed.
"'It seems,' I said, 'from what I heard the white hakim say, that the
blood flowed through those little white tubes. By twisting the
tourniquet very tight, that flow of blood is stopped. The great thing
is to find those little tubes, and tie them up. As you would notice,
the large ones in the inside of the arm could be seen quite plainly.
When they cannot be seen, the screw is unloosed so as to allow a small
quantity of blood to flow, which shows you where the tubes are. You
will remember that I took hold of each, with the bent point of a small
wire or a pair of these nippers; and, while you held it, tied the
thread tightly round it. When that is done, one is ready to cut the
bone. You saw me push the flesh back, so as to cut the bone as high up
as possible; that is because the white doctor said the flesh would
shrink up, and the bone would project. I cut the flesh straight on one
side, and on the other with a flap that will, when it is stitched,
cover over the bone and the rest of the flesh, and make what the hakim
called a pad. He said all cutting off of limbs was done in this way,
but of course the tubes would not lie in the same place, and the
cutting would have to be made differently; but it was all the same
system. He called these simple operations, and said that anyone with a
firm hand, and a knowledge of where these tubes lie, ought to be able
to do it, after seeing it done once or twice. He said, of course, it
would not be so neatly done as by men who had been trained to it; but
that, in cases of extreme necessity, anyone who had seen it done once
or twice, and had sufficient nerve, could do it; especially if they
had, ready at hand, this stuff that makes the wounded man sleep and
feel no pain.
"'I listened very attentively, because all seemed to me almost like
magic, but I certainly did not think that I should ever have to do such
a thing, myself.'
"'But what would be done if they had not that sleep medicine?'
"'The hakim said that, in that case, the wounded man would have to be
fastened down by bandages to the bed, and held by six strong men, so
that he could not move in the slightest. However, there is enough of
that stuff to last a hundred times or more; for, as you see, only a
good-sized spoonful was used.'
"The Emir, who had passed through the harem rooms, now opened the door.
"'Come in,' he said. 'My son is quiet, and has not moved. He has spoken
to his mother, and seems quite sensible. Is there anything more for you
to do to him?'
"'I will put a bandage loosely round his arm, and bind it to his body
so that he cannot move it in his sleep, or on first waking. It will not
be necessary for me to stay with him, as the ladies of the harem can
look after him; but I must remain in the next room, so as to be ready
to run in, at once, should they see that the wound is bleeding again. I
have asked the hakims to make a soothing potion, to aid him to sleep
long and soundly.'
"As I went up to the side of the bed, Abu smiled. I bent down to him,
and he said in a low voice:
"'All the pain has gone. May Allah bless you!'
"'I am afraid that you will feel more pain, tomorrow, but I do not
think it will be so bad as it was before. Now, I hope you will try to
go to sleep. You will be well looked after, and I shall be in the next
room, if you want me. The hakims will give you a soothing draught soon,
and you can have cool drinks when you want them.'
"Things went on as well as I could have wished. In four or five days
the threads came away, and I loosened the tourniquet slightly, and
strapped up the edges of the wound, which were already showing signs of
healing. For the first twenty-four hours I had remained always on
watch; after that the hakims took their turns, I remaining in readiness
to tighten up the tourniquet, should there be any rush of blood. I did
not leave the Emir's house, but slept in a room close by that of the
patient.
"There was now, however, no longer need for my doing so. The splendid
constitution of the young Baggara had, indeed, from the first rendered
any attendance unnecessary. There was no fever, and very little local
inflammation; and I was able to gladden his heart by telling him that,
in another fortnight, he would be able to be up.
"The day I was intending to leave, the Emir sent for me. He was alone.
"'The more I think over this matter,' he said, 'the more strange it is
that you should be able to do all these wonderful things, after having
seen it done once by the white hakim. The more I think of it, the more
certain I feel that you are not what you seem. I have sent for Saleh
and Abdullah. They have told me what you did for them, and that you
gave up your horse to them, and dressed their wounds, and brought them
in here. They are full of praise of your goodness, and but few of my
people would have thus acted, for strangers. They would have given them
a drink of water, and ridden on.
"Now, tell me frankly and without fear. I have thought it over, and I
feel sure that you, yourself, are a white hakim, who escaped from the
battle in which Hicks's army was destroyed.'
"'I am not a hakim. All that I said was true--that although I have seen
operations performed, I have never performed them myself. As to the
rest, I answer you frankly, I am an Englishman. I did escape when the
black Soudanese battalion surrendered, three days after the battle. I
was not a fighting officer. I was with them as interpreter. I may say
that, though I am not a hakim, I did for some time study with the
intention of becoming one, and so saw many operations performed.'
"'I am glad that you told me,' the Emir said gravely. 'Your people are
brave and very wise, though they cannot stand against the power of the
Mahdi. But were you Sheitan himself, it would be nothing to me. You
have saved my son's life. You are the honoured guest of my house. Your
religion is different from mine, but as you showed that you were
willing to aid followers of the Prophet and the Mahdi, although they
were your enemies, surely I, for whom you have done so much, may well
forget that difference.'
"'I thank you, Emir. From what I had seen of you, I felt sure that my
secret would be safe with you. We Christians feel no enmity against
followers of Mahomet--the hatred is all on your side. And yet, 'tis
strange, the Allah that you worship, and the God of the Christians, is
one and the same. Mahomet himself had no enmity against the Christians,
and regarded our Christ as a great prophet, like himself.
"Our Queen reigns, in India, over many more Mohamedans than are ruled
by the Sultan of Turkey. They are loyal to her, and know that under her
sway no difference is made between them and her Christian subjects, and
have fought as bravely for her as her own white troops.'
"'I had never thought,' the Emir said, 'that the time would come when I
should call an infidel my friend; but now that I can do so, I feel that
there is much in what you say. However, your secret must be kept. Were
it known that you are a white man, you would be torn to pieces in the
streets; and even were you to remain here, where assuredly none would
dare touch you, the news would speedily travel to my lord the Mahdi,
and he would send a troop of horse to bring you to him. Therefore,
though I would fain honour you, I see that it is best that you should,
to all save myself, continue to be Mudil. I will not even, as I would
otherwise have done, assign you a house, and slaves, and horses in
token of my gratitude to you for having saved the life of my son.
"'Something I must do, or I should seem utterly ungrateful. I can, at
any rate, give you rooms here, and treat you as an honoured guest. This
would excite no remark, as it would be naturally expected that you
would stay here until my son is perfectly cured. I shall tell no one,
not even my wife; but Abu I will tell, when he is cured, and the secret
will be as safe with him as with me. I think it would please him to
know. Although a Baggara like myself, and as brave as any, he is
strangely gentle in disposition; and though ready and eager to fight,
when attacked by other tribes, he does not care to go on expeditions
against villages which have not acknowledged the power of the Mahdi,
and makes every excuse to avoid doing so. It will please him to know
that the man who has saved his life is one who, although of a different
race and religion, is willing to do kindness to an enemy; and will love
and honour you more, for knowing it.'
"'I thank you deeply, Emir, and anything that I can do for members of
your family, I shall be glad to do. I have a knowledge of the usages of
many of the drugs in the chest that was brought here. I have not dared
to say so before, because I could not have accounted for knowing such
things.'
"So at present I am installed in the Emir's palace, and my prospects
grow brighter and brighter. After the great victory the Mahdi has won,
it is likely that he will be emboldened to advance against Khartoum. In
that case he will, no doubt, summon his followers from all parts, and I
shall be able to ride with the Emir or his son; and it will be hard if,
when we get near the city, I cannot find some opportunity of slipping
off and making my way there. Whether it will be prudent to do so is
another question, for I doubt whether the Egyptian troops there will
offer any resolute resistance to the Dervish hosts; and in that case, I
should have to endeavour to make my way down to Dongola, and from there
either by boat or by the river bank to Assouan.
"A month later. I have not written for some time, because there has
been nothing special to put down. All the little details of the life
here can be told to my dear wife, if I should ever see her again; but
they are not of sufficient interest to write down. I have been living
at the Emir's house, ever since. I do not know what special office I am
supposed to occupy in his household--that is, what office the people in
general think that I hold. In fact, I am his guest, and an honoured
one. When he goes out I ride beside him and Abu, who has now
sufficiently recovered to sit his horse. I consider myself as medical
attendant, in ordinary, to him and his family. I have given up all
practice in the town--in the first place because I do not wish to make
enemies of the two doctors, who really seem very good fellows, and I am
glad to find that they have performed two or three operations
successfully; and in the second place, were I to go about trying to
cure the sick, people would get so interested in me that I should be
continually questioned as to how I attained my marvellous skill.
Happily, though no doubt they must have felt somewhat jealous at my
success with Abu, I have been able to do the hakims some service, put
fees into their pockets, and at the same time benefited poor people
here. I have told them that, just as I recognized the bottle of
chloroform, so I have recognized some of the bottles from which the
white hakims used to give powder to sick people.
"'For instance,' I said, 'you see this bottle, which is of a different
shape from the others. It is full of a white, feathery-looking powder.
They used to give this to people suffering from fever--about as much as
you could put on your nail for men and women, and half as much for
children. They used to put it in a little water, and stir it up, and
give it to them night and morning. They call it kena, or something like
that. It did a great deal of good, and generally drove away the fever.
"'This other bottle they also used a good deal. They put a little of
its contents in water, and it made a lotion for weak and sore eyes.
They called it zing. They saw I was a careful man, and I often made the
eye wash, and put the other white powder up into little packets when
they were busy, as fever and ophthalmia are the two most common
complaints among the natives.'
"The hakims were immensely pleased, and both told me, afterwards, that
both these medicines had done wonders. I told them that I thought there
were some more bottles of these medicines in the chest, and that when
they had finished those I had now given them, I would look out for the
others. I had, in fact, carried off a bottle both of quinine and zinc
powder for my own use, and with the latter I greatly benefited several
of the Emir's children and grandchildren, all of whom were suffering
from ophthalmia; or from sore eyes, that would speedily have developed
that disease, if they had not been attended to.
"I had only performed one operation, which was essentially a minor one.
Abu told me that his wife, of whom he was very fond, was suffering very
great pain from a tooth--could I cure her?
"I said that, without seeing the tooth, I could not do anything, and he
at once said:
"'As it is for her good, Mudil, I will bring her into this room, and
she shall unveil so that you can examine the tooth.'
"She was quite a girl, and for an Arab very good looking. She and the
Emir's wife were continually sending me out choice bits from their
dinner, but I had not before seen her face. She was evidently a good
deal confused, at thus unveiling before a man, but Abu said:
"'It is with my permission that you unveil, therefore there can be no
harm in it. Besides, has not Mudil saved my life, and so become my
brother?'
"He opened her mouth. The tooth was far back and broken, and the gum
was greatly swelled.
"'It is very bad,' I said to Abu. 'It would hurt her terribly, if I
were to try and take it out; but if she will take the sleeping medicine
I gave you, I think that I could do it.'
"'Then she shall take it,' he said at once. 'It is not unpleasant. On
the contrary, I dreamt a pleasant dream while you were taking off my
arm. Please do it, at once.'
"I at once fetched the chloroform, the inhaler, and a pair of forceps
which looked well suited for the purpose, and probably were intended
for it. I then told her to lie down on the angareb, which I placed
close to the window.
"'Now, Abu,' I said, 'directly she has gone off to sleep, you must
force her mouth open, and put the handle of your dagger between her
teeth. It will not hurt her at all. But I cannot get at the tooth
unless the mouth is open, and we cannot open it until she is asleep,
for the whole side of her face is swollen, and the jaw almost stiff.'
"The chloroform took effect very quickly. Her husband had some
difficulty in forcing the mouth open. When he had once done so, I took
a firm hold of the tooth, and wrenched it out.
"'You can withdraw the dagger,' I said, 'and then lift her up, and let
her rinse her mouth well with the warm water I brought in. She will
have little pain afterwards, though of course it will take some little
time, before the swelling goes down.'
"Then I went out, and left them together. In a few minutes, Abu came
out.
"'She has no pain,' he said. 'She could hardly believe, when she came
round, that the tooth was out. It is a relief, indeed. She has cried,
day and night, for the past three days.'
"'Tell her that, for the rest of the day, she had better keep quiet;
and go to sleep if possible, which I have no doubt she will do, as she
must be worn out with the pain she has been suffering.'
"'I begin to see, Mudil, that we are very ignorant. We can fight, but
that is all we are good for. How much better it would be if, instead of
regarding you white men as enemies, we could get some of you to live
here, and teach us the wonderful things that you know!'
"'Truly it would be better,' I said. 'It all depends upon yourselves.
You have a great country. If you would but treat the poor people here
well, and live in peace with other tribes; and send word down to Cairo
that you desire, above all things, white hakims and others who would
teach you, to come up and settle among you, assuredly they would come.
There are thousands of white men and women working in India, and China,
and other countries, content to do good, not looking for high pay, but
content to live poorly. The difficulty is not in getting men willing to
heal and to teach, but to persuade those whom they would benefit to
allow them to do the work.'
"Abu shook his head.
"'That is it,' he said. 'I would rather be able to do such things as
you do, than be one of the most famous soldiers of the Mahdi; but I
could never persuade others. They say that the Mahdi himself, although
he is hostile to the Turks, and would conquer Egypt, would willingly
befriend white men. But even he, powerful as he is, cannot go against
the feelings of his emirs. Must we always be ignorant? Must we always
be fighting? I can see no way out of it. Can you, Mudil?'
"'I can see but one way,' I said, 'and that may seem to you impossible,
because you know nothing of the strength of England. We have, as you
know, easily beaten the Egyptian Army; and we are now protectors of
Egypt. If you invade that country, as the Mahdi has already threatened
to do, it is we who will defend it; and if there is no other way of
obtaining peace, we shall some day send an army to recover the Soudan.
You will fight, and you will fight desperately, but you have no idea of
the force that will advance against you. You know how Osman Digna's
tribes on the Red Sea have been defeated, not by the superior courage
of our men, but by our superior arms. And so it will be here. It may be
many years before it comes about, but if you insist on war, that is
what will come.
"'Then, when we have taken the Soudan, there will come peace, and the
peasant will till his soil in safety. Those who desire to be taught
will be taught; great canals from the Nile will irrigate the soil, and
the desert will become fruitful.'
"'You really think that would come of it?' Abu asked, earnestly.
"'I do indeed, Abu. We have conquered many brave peoples, far more
numerous than yours; and those who were our bitterest enemies now see
how they have benefited by it. Certainly, England would not undertake
the cost of such an expedition lightly; but if she is driven to it by
your advance against Egypt, she will assuredly do so. Your people--I
mean the Baggaras and their allies--would suffer terribly; but the
people whom you have conquered, whose villages you have burned, whose
women you have carried off, would rejoice.'
"'We would fight,' Abu said passionately.
"'Certainly you would fight, and fight gallantly, but it would not
avail you. Besides, Abu, you would be fighting for that ignorance you
have just regretted, and against the teaching and progress you have
wished for.'
"'It is hard,' Abu said, quietly.
"'It is hard, but it has been the fate of all people who have resisted
the advance of knowledge and civilization. Those who accept
civilization, as the people of India--of whom there are many more than
in all Africa--have accepted it, are prosperous. In America and other
great countries, far beyond the seas, the native Indians opposed it,
but in vain; and now a great white race inhabit the land, and there is
but a handful left of those who opposed them.'
"'These things are hard to understand. If, as you say, your people come
here some day to fight against us, I shall fight. If my people are
defeated, and I am still alive, I shall say it is the will of Allah;
let us make the best of it, and try to learn to be like those who have
conquered us. I own to you that I am sick of bloodshed--not of blood
shed in battle, but the blood of peaceful villagers; and though I
grieve for my own people, I should feel that it was for the good of the
land that the white men had become the masters.'"