Our bodies... and they occupied my head and I do not know how to bury them from myself.

This message was to the Mahdi, and he was one of those who hoped to destroy us, as he relied on the fall of Khartoum, which emboldened him to advance. He was provoked by Ibrahim al-Sanjaq, who reminded us of his flight. And when the army was victorious, he sent a letter to al-Thama, in which he said the following: We are the first division of His Majesty the King's army. We have come to curb the arrogance of the wicked rebels and to save the city of Khartoum. If you wish to enter our obedience, you will have safety. Meet us south of the town, raising the flags of safety and the safety of His Majesty our King. You must surrender and submit. And know that if you do not do that, what happened to those we fought in Abu Telih will happen to you. And then you will reap the fruits of what your hands have sown. And peace.

When this letter reached the people of al-Thama, they evacuated the town and camped south of it. On the second day of Jumada al-Thani, the English army arrived at al-Thama. The Dervishes fortified themselves in the town, and the English attacked them with strange steadfastness. Their bombs and their artillery caused many casualties in the Dervish positions and trenches.

The army met with the steamers that had been sent from Gordon for reconnaissance, under the command of Ahmed Nasr Pasha. The army camped in the village of (al-Qubba) south of al-Thama, and fortified itself there.

And here it is said: If the army had advanced from its arrival at Khartoum, it would not have fallen. And it is said in al-Thama: five days. On the seventh day of Jumada al-Thani, (Sir Charles Wilson), the intelligence officer of the army, sailed on the steamer (Berdin) and ( ) towards Khartoum. His journey was before sunset, and he sailed his steamers very slowly due to the low water level of the Nile and the waterfalls ahead.