So A MEAL ON THE MARCH.

CHAPTER XV.

THE RAID ON SHENDY, AND AFTER, Hickman, for the Shendy expedition. The 15th was one of the reserve battalions formed in 1896, and had already had some experience of desultory skirmishing with the Dervishes during their advance along the river. Major Hickman, its commander, was a veteran who had served withHunter during years of frontier warfare, and he and his battalion might be relied upon to give a good account of themselves. The naval part of the expedition consisted of the three large gunboats built at Wyvenhoe in 1896— none of them drawing more than 18 inches of water when fully loaded, and all armed with quick-firing guns and Maxims. Captain Keppel, who acted as commodore of the flotilla, commanded the Zafir, Captain Hood the Nasir, and Captain Bentley the Fateh. The 15th Egyptians, Captain Parke's battery, and 160 friendly Jaalin, were embarked on the steamers. The Jaalin belonged to the tribe which had been cut to pieces by the Dervishes at Metemneh in the fight of July I, 1897. Many of their women were captives in the Mahdist camp, and the "Friendlies" were eager to meet the Dervishes again in battle.

FOR the last few days the gunboats had been very quiet. Captain Keppel was "lying low." A good many people thought he was forced into this inactivity because there was no longer water even for his shallow draft steamers in the reach of the Nile between Ed Darner and Metemneh. Some of the London papers even reported that the gunboats were aground. It is very likely that the Dervish leaders counted on the fall of the river, thus putting the flotilla out of action. In 1885, when Sir Charles Wilson tried to reach Khartoum withGordon's steamers, thelow state of theNilewas a serious source of difficulty and delay, and, eventually, even of danger. But that was in the last days ofJanuary. It was now the end of March, and theriver wasnear itslowest state. SoMahmoud might well expect that his depots of supplies at and near Shendy would be tolerably safe.

The Sirdar, however, knew better, and his next move was to send Keppel up the river with a force of infantry on his gunboats to destroy Mahmoud's base of supplies. Once that was done, if the Dervish general remained inactive in hiscamp among the bush of theAtbara, he would soon be in a starving condition. Accordingly, the 3rd Egyptian battalion was The flotilla left the camp at the mouth 0! the Atbara on Wednesday, March 23, and began to steam slowly towards Shendy. The river was so low that they had to feel their sent to the fort at the mouth of the Atbara to set free the i;th battalion, under JUaipr