204 Metreat of Belgians.

Chad, but he declined, and himself returned along his own route to Rafai, where he arrived on 8th June, 1894 y and at proceeded to Europe.

Ee-occupa-The Khalifa on hearing of the presence of Europeans tkm by jn the Bahr el Ghazal and of their having communicated with the Emir of Shakka, sent orders to Mahmud to reoccupy the Bahr el Ghazal, and in consequence a force of 1,800 Sudanese riflemen and 2,000 spearmen, under the Emir Khatem Musa, was despatched from Shakka towards the Belgian posts in the summer of 1894 ; they were delayed some time by the rains, but eventually pushed forward. The Belgians, whose headquarters were at Liffi, with advanced post at Hofrat en Nahas, retired before Khatem Musa, who entered Earoga. Sheikh Hamed, finding himself deserted by the Belgians, sided with the Dervishes, and handed over the treaties ; these, together with two letters written by Belgians at Liffi dated September, 1894, arrived at Omdurman in January, 1895.

The result of the Dervish victory over Fadl el Maula manifested itself at Omdurman in May, 1894, by a steamer from Regaf bringing back loot in the shape of many tarbushes, two guns, ivory, five red standards with white stripes, and many breech-loading rifles and Congo Eree State buttons, together with a report that a great victory had been gained over " the Turks." This produced at first considerable conjecture in Egypt as to the identity of those who had been defeated.

As regards Abu Girgeh, he was thrown into prison about the same time by Dafalla.

The Dervishes had meanwhile been losing ground in the west, and only retained garrisons at El Easher, El Obeid, Nuhud, and Shakka, besides the penal settlement at Regaf.

During 1894 there were various disturbances and rumours of invasion by white men in general from the south-west, and by Rabeh Zubehr in particular. Although little is known about these western movements in Wadai, &c, it is worth noticing that much information, decidedly accurate on the whole, regarding movements of Europeans and their native troops on the Upper Nile trickled down to Omdurman and thence to the Egyptian Intelligence Department. A rumour reached Omdurman in November, 1894, that the Regaf troops were being hard pressed (this must refer