190 Relief of Eastern Garrisons.

Tofrek, 22nd MaTch, 1885.

lielief ot Gallabat, Amadib, Gera, and Senhit.

Fall of Kassala, 30th July, 1885.

Kufit, 23rd September, 1885.

to prepare for the opening: of the Suakin-Berber road when the Nile Column had captured Berber.

The; expedition, numbering 13,000 men, arrived at Suakin on and about the 12th March, and remained for a couple of months. During this time it fought several actions at Hashin (20th March), Tofrek (McNeill's zeriba, 22nd March), and Tamai (3rd April), but none of these were decisive. The railway was carried as far as Otao, but on the retirement of the expedition (17th May) it was abandoned.

At the end of November, 1884, the garrison of Gallabat joined hands with the Abyssinians, and decisively beat the Mahdists. They were definitely relieved in February, 1 885, and retired to Massawa via Abyssinia. Amadib and Gera were also relieved, in April and July, 1885, respectively, and the garrison at Senhit handed over their post to Abyssinia on the 19th April.

Colonel Chermside now wrote pressing letters to John, urging him to relieve Kassala at once, and promising 10,00') rifles in the event of his success ; Ras Alula, John's most valiant general, therefore began to move in September. Meanwhile, however, the gallant garrison had been starved into submission, and the town fell on the 30th July.

Osman Digna came towards Kassala in August, but the Abyssinians and Beni Amer attacked him with great determination at Kufit (23rd September) and utterly routed him, killing 3,000 of his men.

Egypt had on the 6th February handed over Massawa to the Italians, at wThich the Abyssinians, deeming it an infra tion of the Hewett treaty, were seriously annoyed In consequence Ras Alula refused, after the fight at Kufit, to resume operations against the Mahdists, and retired.

In the beginning of 1886 Osman Digna once more tried to stir up strife in the neighbourhood of Suakin. The tribes, however, did not greet him cordially, and the attitude of the Amarar, Ashraf, and Habab was doubtful. As the year wore on, the Amarar fought against Digna, shut him up in Tamai, and beat him there (6th September). As the Beni Amer, Bisharin, &c, were showing siy;ns of coming in, Osman Digna escaped and took refuge in the rich delta of Tokar. Here he remained quiet for another year.