Gordon's latest letters. 87 I shall send this journal. If some effort is not made before ten days time the town will fall. It is inexplicable this delay. If the expeditionary forces have reached the river and met my steamers, one hundred men are all that we require, just to show themselves.

I send this journal, for I have little hopes of saving it if the town falls. I put in the sort of arrangement I would make with Zubair Pasha for the future government of the Soudan."

On the following day, December 14th,—"Arabs fired two shells at the palace this morning; 546 ardebs dhoora in store; also 83,525 okes of biscuit! 10.30 a.m. the steamers are down at Omdurman engaging the Arabs; consequently I am on tentcr-Jtooks! 11.30 a.m. steamers returned; the Bordeen was struck by a shell in her battery; we had only one man wounded. We are going to send down the Bordeen to-morrow with this journal. If I was in command of the two hundred men of the expeditionary force, which are all that are necessary for the movement, I should stop just below Halfeyeh, and attack the Arabs at that place before I came on here to Khartum. I should then communicate with the north fort and act according to circumstances. Now, mark this, if the expeditionary force, and I ask for no more than two hundred men, does not come in ten days the town may fall; and I have done my best for the honour of our country. Good-bye! You send me no information though you have lots of money."

This, then, was the information in the volume of the journal, the latest entry in which was the 14th of December, 1884, and it had just reached Sir Charles Wilson's hands at Gubat on the 2 2d of January, 1885. The letters which Sir Charles Wilson first opened were dated October 24th, and were addressed to the officer commanding H. M. troops. One was an order to Nashi Pasha, the Egyptian commanding the four steamers, to give them over to the Eno-lish. The other was as follows : " I have sent the steamers Saphia, Mansourah, Bordeen, Talataween, Tewfikia, down towards Berber to aid you. On board these steamers are officers and men of Egyptian army. I request:— i. You will take charge of the steamers (though I would not recommend you to change the captains, the reis or steersmen, or the crews). 2. That you will