192 EGYPT AND THE SOUDAN.

contingent. On passing the Cambridge Club Hotel several bags of rice, evidently meant as an expression of good-will towards the men who were going to the Soudan, were emptied from the lofty balconies of the building on to the crowds below, and hearty cheering followed this token of good feeling. Just at this spot the crowd was very great, and right along College Street the spectators were formed up in dense masses on either side of the procession. The sloping banks of Hyde Park were covered by an immense concourse of people, who cheered enthusiastically as the contingent passed by; and Mr. Dalley and Mr. Dibbs were frequently applauded. Appropriate mottoes were displayed at intervals along Oxford and College Streets, amongst them being two bearing the inscriptions "Strike for Victory!" and "God Speed!" The latter also bore a representation of the Southern Cross. Turning into Park Street the scene was an exceedingly pretty and animated one. Dense crowds lined the thoroughfare, and vast multitudes were assembled inside the railings of the park. The foliage of the trees, together with the bunting and the gay-coloured costumes of the ladies, produced a charming effect. The standards carried in the midst of the naval contingent also added to the effect of the spectacle.

On reaching the quay the men formed square and were addressed by the governor as follows: " Soldiers of New South Wales,— I have considered it my duty, as the representative of her Majesty, to say a few words to you at this solemn moment before your embarkation. For the first time in the great history of the British Empire a distant colony is sending, at its own cost and completely equipped, a contingent of troops, who have volunteered with an enthusiasm of which only we who witnessed it can judge, to assist the imperial forces in a bitter struggle for the suppression of unspeakable cruelty and for the establishment of order and justice in a misgoverned country.

Countless as have been the occasions when the blood and treasure of England have been poured out freely to protect the feeble, to shield the defenceless, or to maintain right, there has never been one in which humanity has been more deeply interested