THE BATTLE-FIELD. 137 friends. Dead Arabs in hundreds strewed the ground, mostly with a fiendish expression on their still faces.

Here and there the Mahdi's uniform and straw cap proclaimed one of superior rank ; but the greater part by far were clad in (originally) white garments, wound round the waist, and fastened over the left shoulder the shaven head crowned with a white cotton skull cap. In some cases their clothes had caught fire from the nearness of the discharge of the rifles, and several of the heaps of bodies were smouldering. Arms of all sorts and broken banner-staves were scattered over the field ; spears in hundreds, some of enormous length, javelins, knobkerries, hatchets, swords and knives,* but no shields of any sort ; for the Mahdi, knowing their uselessness against bullets, had ordered them to be left at home, in order to give greater freedom for using the other weapons.

Fatigue parties were now sent out to collect the arms and ammunition strewn about, and to destroy all * I even found a Birmingham bill-hook, with the trade-mark on it, in an Arab's hand, sharp as a razor and covered with blood and hair : how it got there I know not, so I confiscated it for the use of our mess.