2 26 EGYPT AND THE SOUDAN.

dervishes send you false reports of everything, and you believe them; then they laugh. This fighting and spilling of blood continued till the sun rode high in the sky—red, yet darkened by smoke and dust. There was riot and clamour, hubbub and wrangling over spoil; cursing was heard till the hour of evening prayer, but the muezzin was not called; neither were any prayers offered up at the mosque on that dark day in the annals of Khartum. But the history of those scenes will not be written on its records; for all scrolls and papers and books in the archives were destroyed and scattered abroad. Yet the howling herd, the screeching devils bespattered with gore, swarming about in droves and bands, found not the plunder that they had been promised or had expected. Then they were exasperated.

Their fury knew no bounds, and they sought out Faragh Pasha; but he was with the dervishes. He had presented himself to them as one deserving well of honour and rewards. ' Where is the hidden treasure of the Greek merchants and Bachalees; of Leontides and Georgio Themetrio? Yes, and of the Franchesi Marquet; of the Italian Michaelo? We know that you are acquainted with the secret hiding-place. Where are all the thaleries of Marcopolo and of the German tailor Klein ? We know that those that left Khartum were unable to carry away their silver, and you know where it is hid.' The dervishes, seeing the tumult, questioned him sharply and addressed him thus : ' The long-expected One, our Lord, desires to know where the English pasha hid his wealth. We know he was very rich, and every day paid large sums of money; this has not been concealed from our lord. Now, therefore, let us know, that we may bear him word where all the ' felluce' he gave the troops is hidden, so that we may put it into the treasury. Let him be bound and examined in the inner chamber.'

Then were the doors of the house where the dervishes were, and the gates of the gardens outside—they were in the Jeneseh closed against the Arab soldiery, and they were driven out, though angry words and threats were loudly heard. Faragh was now questioned, but he swore by Allah and by the souls of his fathers