152 Conquest of Darfur.

Belial's expedition to Bahr el Ghazal ££g** Belial depot, a fact which, appears from the following correspondence which, passed between Bonaparte and Sultan Abd -el-Rahman, surnamed " the Just." During the French Expedition to Egypt, "the Just" wrote to Bonaparte " In the name of God the compassionate, the merciful," saying he was glad to hear that he had conquered the Mamelukes. The reply was as follows :— " Au Sultan du Darfour, 12 Messidor, an VII, au nom. de Dieu, clement et misericordieux, il n'y a d'autre Dieu que Dieu ! au Sultan du Dar-fur Abd-el-Rahman. " J'ai recu votre lettre : j'en ai compris le contenu ; lorsqne votre caravane est arrivee j'etais absent ayant ete en Syrie pour punir et detruire nos ennemis. Je vous prie de m'envoyer par la premiere caravane 2,000 esclaves noirs ayant plus de 16 ans, forts et vigoureux : je les acheterai pour mon compte. Ordonnez votre caravane de venir de suite, de ne pas s'arreter en route : je donne les ordres pour qu'elle soit protegee partout. " Le General-en- Chef Bonaparte."

Datiug from the days of Mehemet Ali's expeditions, Darfur was in constant dread of Egyptian aggression, and the country was practically closed to all Europeans, who were regarded as spies. For many generations Darfur had sent annually a caravan containing ivory, feathers* gum, slaves, &c, to Egypt, bringing back in exchange cloth, beads, firearms, &c. In 1874, the slave trade having been stopped in Egyptian territory, the Governor of the Sudan seized all the slaves belonging to the caravan of that year ; this was one of the causes which led to a rupture with the Sultan of Darfur.

In 18G9 the power of the slave dealers in the Bahr el Ghazal had»become so great that they refused to pay their rentals to the Egyptian Government. Conspicuous amongthem was a certain Zubehr Bahama, who, according to Dr. Schweinfurth, lived in princely style and was regarded as a kind of king.

With the object of re-establishing his authority in the Bahr el Ghazal provinces, and also of conquering Darfur, the Khedive sent a small force under the command of This force was destroyed by Zubehr, who became the chief power in the country. The Sultan of Darfur, in the meantime, to meet Belial's threatened attack, had