WARS OF THE NINETIES 68 tourists in Cairo, where the season was at its height. The soldiers got a grand "send off" as they marched to the railway station.

There werethree Britishbattalions ingarrison at Cairo, the ist Warwicks, the ist Lincolns,and advance beganin 1896,but the Khalifa wasabout tomake a wildeffort to break the circle of steel that was closing in upon his capital. The last week of the year brought news to the Sirdar's headquarters at WadyHalfa that Mahmoud's GENERAL GATACRE. (Plwto: J. T. dimming,Aldershot.)

camps at Metemneh and Shendy were being rapidly reinforced from Khartoum the istCameronHighlanders. The first to start were two companies of the Warwicks, who left for Wady Haifa on the 3rd of January. The Lincolns, the rest of the Warwicks, and the Camerons, were then sent off by halfbattalions. The first detachments had to proceedby river from a point between Luxor and Assouan, but on January 10 the Lower Nile railway was openedthroughout from Cairo to Shellal, at the There was great excitement inCairo on New Year's Day when it was known that British troopshadbeen" suddenly" orderedto thefront. There really was nothing sudden about the order, which hadbeen decided upon a fortnight before. But it was a surprise to thepublic,and afforded some lively sensation to the crowds of