WARS OF THE' NINETIES. 110 Of course theleading companies must have fired many more. The total loss of the British brigade was twenty-one killed and ninety wounded. The Camerons contributed to this total no less than sixteen killed and thirty-five wounded. As has been already remarked, the loss would have been heavier if the Dervish ammunition had not been so bad. Manymen hadtheir clothes torn,or werebruisedby bullets, which flattenedon their dress or accoutrements, or glanced in striking them. One of the most curious cases was that of Corporal Laurie of the Seaforths, whose letter home, describing his numerous narrow escapes, went the round of the papers.

Presbyterian chaplain, the Anglican and Roman Catholic chaplains also offering prayer. There was no firing party, but a guard of honour presented arms, and the pipers of the Camerons and Seaforths played a Highlandlament.

The wounded wereplaced on stretchers,which were carriedby parties of Egyptian soldiers to Umdabiya. Then lighters,covered in withwood and canvasroofs, were towedup theAtbara, and conveyedthe woundeddown to the Nile. The worst cases were treated in the large base hospital at Dakhala, the rest were sent on by boat and train to WadyHaifa andCairo. There were a few deaths, but most of the injured made goodand rapid recoveries.

On the very dav of the battle the armybegan its marchback toBerber. Difficulties of supply wereso great that it was important to decrease asrapidly as might be the distancefromrailhead, and with the utter destruction of Mahmoud's force there was no need of keeping any large body concentrated on the Atbara. The guard of the fortified camp and fort at thejunction of therivers was confided toLewis's brigade. The gunboats remained to patrol the river,andthe friendlies took chargeofMetemneh and Shendy.

The campaign of the Atbara had in no way changedthe Sirdar's original planof waitingfor the advance on Khartoum till thelate summer, when the rise of the Nile wouldallowhisformidable gunboat flotilla to be used w-ith full effect, and wouldat the same timesimplify all the work of transport and supply, by giving him a clear waterway from Berber up to Omdurman and beyond.

"BeforeIentered the zereba," he wrote,"I wasnot struck, but shortly after a bullet took off the toe of my left shoe withouthitting my foot, the shoe being a size too big for easymarching and sleeping at night. Then my bayonet was struck and bent overat a right angle. Then a shot went through my sleeve, nearmy leftwrist, tearing two holes,but not hurtingmyself. Then my rifle was struck while Iwas loading, the bullet splintering the butt,andbeing stoppedby aniron bolt which it met. This bullet would certainly have gone right into my body but for my rifle beingthere. Then a nigger in a trench let drive at me with a spear, missedmv ribsby an inch, and split up my haversack. A bullet then grazed the back of my handjust enough to make it bleed. WhenIreachedthe river bank, which was nearly perpendicular, a shot came from the bottom, about twenty feet below,and a little to the left, whichcaused the woundIam supposedto havegot. [CorporalLaurieevidently means the wound w-hich gave him a place on the list of casualties.] It was so curious thatIwas paraded before the General. It enteredthrough the lid of my right ammunition pouch, which was open, went into my right coat pocket, smashing a penknife and two pencils, tore four holes inmy shirt, made a surface wound two or three inches long on my left breast, and came out near my left shoulder through my coat and ammunition-pouch braces. In the afternoon Istrolled over to the field hospital and got a piece of dressing on, and it has never troubled me since."

Ofthefugitives from thebattle-fieldone strong party struck the river at Aliab. There they found the gunboat E"uttch, one of the large stern-wheelers, waiting for them. Summoned to surrender, they refused. The gunboat opened on them with her quick-firers and Maxims,and drove them from the river bank with a lossoi sometwohundred. Aboutseventyof themsurrendered toa partylandedfrom theFutteh. Another bodyof fugitives which went up the Atbara was attacked by a detachment from Kassala, and many were taken prisoners. By this time the Sirdar had sent messengers out in alldirections to assure the fugitives that if they would come in and surrender they would be well treated. Officers were also sent out to prevent the Jaalin and Ababdeh friendlies from massacring the dispersed Dervishes. The result of these me was that every day fugitives came in to thecamp at Dakhala, and to a small post of Egyptian In the afternoon the British dead were buried m a wide trench dug in the palm belt to the north of the enemy's camp. The Sirdar and General Gatacre with their staff officers were present. Most of the dead were Presbyterians, sothegreater part of the service wasread by the