78 WITH KITCHENER IN THE SOUDAN The Dervishes now began to give way, and the gun-boats steamed up the river, making for Dongola. The Dervishes, as soon as they had gone, reopened fire, and the duel continued all day; but the great mass of the enemy soon left, and also made their way towards Dongola. It was awfully annoying being obliged to remain inactive on our side, and it was especially hard for the cavalry, who, if they could have got over, would have been able to cut up and disperse the enemy. The next morning the Dervishes were all gone, and that was practically the end of the fighting. The gun-boats went up and shelled Dongola, and when we got there, two days later, the Dervishes had had enough of it. Of course, there was a little fighting, but it was the effort of a party of fanatics rather than of an enemy who considered resistance possible. We were greeted with enthusiasm by the unfortunate inhabitants, who had been subject to the Dervish tyranny. As a whole, however, they had not been badly treated here, and had been allowed to continue to cultivate their land, subject only to about the same taxation as they had paid to Egypt. Of course, from what they have done elsewhere, the comparative mildness of the conduct of the Dervishes was not due to any feeling of mercy, but to policy. As the most advanced position, with the exception of scattered and temporary posts lower down the river, it was necessary that there should be food for the considerable body of tribesmen encamped at Dongola, especially as an army invading Egypt would provide itself there with stores for the journey. It was therefore good policy to encourage the cultivators of land to stay there.”

“ Thank you very much ! ” Gregory said, when the officer had concluded his sketch of the previous campaign. “ Of course I heard that we had beaten the Khalifa’s men and had taken Dongola, but the papers at Cairo gave no details. The Staffordshire regiment went down directly the place was taken, did they not ? ” Yes ; they had suffered heavily from cholera ; and as there