The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-05-13
TIE HERO OF KHART0UM.
The Strange and Adventurous Career OF a
Thoroughly Unseltish Man.
com niled from Arahibald Forbes'g Rook

Born of a race of soldiers, his profession was
practically marked out for him from childhood.
He got his first experience CT actual warfare IN
the Crimea, taking prominent part. as an engl-
neer in the siege of Sevastopol. 1t was the ex-
perience gained in the Crimean war; together
with his great theoretical knowledge of military
affairs and especially Of all that related to engl-
neering, that was to stand him in such good
stead few years later when he was to lead the
"ever-victorious army" from conquest to CON
quest and enact the chief part in one of the most
thrilling episodes of modern warfare.
The Tai Ping rebellion occurred at a time
when America had a much larger rebellion on
her own hands, and upon which her attention
was naturally concentrated. Between the Tai
Ping rebellion and that of the false prophet of
the Soudan there is an obvious analogy, and it
is certainly a curious thing that the man
who suppressed the one should be the
one upon whom it should devolve to
cope with the other Mr.. Forbes points out the
similarity between the Mahdi and the Heaven
ly King" of the Tai-Ping rebellion: Hung Sew
tsuen was "a poor youth of rude, despised race;
Mohammed Ahmed is a son of Dongola carpen-
ter. Both professed, and perhaps felt, religious
enthusiasm; both certainly made weapon of
the religious enthusiasm with which they were
displays personal heroism both schemed and al
lowed others to fight their battles. Both char
acters are full of personal licentiousness and
ruthless cruelty And Mr.. Forbes might have
added that both have fought with very material
ends in view, aside from whatever spiritual ones
may have served as pretexts.
Gordon went to China in 1860, and was with
the English army when, in the fall of that year,
the allied forces made an attack on Pekin, which
resulted in giving the capital over to their hands
and in the burning of the summer palace for
which Lord Elgin was so severely criticised. AT
this time the Tai-Ping rebellion had been
when the allies took hand in it,
on behalf of the imperial government, Gordon
was on the spot, and gained that minute knowl-
edge of the country about the mouth of the
Yang TIE of which he was to make such effect
i've use few months later AT this time he
made the prophesy that two years would see
the end of the revolt, little dreaming that he
himself would be the means whereby it would
come to final grief.
The ''ever-victorious army" was organized by
the private enterprise of some wealthy merchants
of Shanghai. Under its first leaders, Ward and
Burgoine, it had already achieved a certain rep
utation, when the death of the former and the
dismissal of the latter left it without a COM
mander To this command Gordon was appoint
ed, and from that time onward, in the face of
enormous obstacles, both external and internal,
kept it under his control, and led it from victory
to victory He took command in March, 1868 In
May 1865, Chanchufu the last of the rebel
Strongholds was captured and the rebellion
was at an end The force which, under Cor
don's leadership, accomplished this, numbered
from two to five thousand native soldiers, Off
eered by Europeans. 1t was frequently on the
brink of mutiny, frequently guilty of treacher-
Gus designs but the frmness of Gordon was
quite equal to the occasion, His policy was to
recruit his forces from the captured rebels,
which he did on several occasions the willing
ness with which they changed sides furnishing
striking commentary upon the genuineness of
the motives which inspired the rebellion.
The gratitude of the Chinese government for
Gordon's services knew no bounds The large
sums of money which we're offered him were re
fused, but he accepted the decorations which
represented the highest hOnors within the inn
peria gift The English government was hardly
less slow in recognizing his splendid achieve
ments, and upon his return made him q. b.,
and intristed to him the important work of SUI
perinGending the defense of the Thames. Those
who wish to read o full account of his
Chinese career will do we'll to consult the work
of DR.. Andrew Wilson on the Ever Victorious
Army"
The next six years of Gordons life were passed
at Gravesend, the only years of anything like a
quiet peaceful exist ence that his manhood has
known. Two three more spent near the
mouth of the Danube, and then opened the sec
ond great chapter of his life, the chapter which
deals with his work in central Africa, and which
is not yet closed He arrived in Cairo in 1874
to enter into the service of the Khedive, under
the official title, which he found very amusing
of His Excellency General Colonel Gordon, the
Governor General of the Equator" His first stay
in Africa was of two years duration, but he had
accomplished an almost incredible amount in this
space of time Mr.. Forbes sums it up as follows
HE had mapped the White Nile from Khartoum
to within a short distance of the Victoria Nyan-
"a. He had given to the slave trade on the
White Nile a deadly blow. He had
restored confidence and peace among the
tribes of the Nile valley so that they now freely
brought into the stations their beef, corn, and
ivory for sale, He had opened up the water
communication between GondokOro and the
the lakes. He had formed government districts,
and established secure posts with safe communi-
cation between them. He had contributed a
revenue to the khedival exchequer and this
without oppression"
After a short holiday in England he returned
to Egypt early in 1877, and with greatly in
creased powers went to work again. st was
stupendous task, writes one of his biographers,
ITO give peace to a country quick with war, to
suppress slavery among people to whom the
trade in human flesh was life and fortune; to
make an army out of perhaps the worst material
ever seen to grow fiourishing trade and fair
revenue on the widest anarchy in the world.
The immensely of the undertaking, the infinity
CT details involved II single step toward the
end the countless odds to be faced, the many
pests, the deadly climate, the horrible vermin
the CHASTITY itch, the nightly and daily alter
nations of overpovering heat and bitter cold to
be endured and overcome, the environment of
bestal savagery and ruthless fanaticism-all
these combine to make the achievement unique
in human history"
And yet all this was done by the energy of
this one during the five years which he
spent in the Soudan. Unfortunately it was to be
undone too quickly; for no sooner had Egyptian
intrigue succeeded in getting rid of him than the
old order of things was restored slavery and
slave-hunting became the chief institution of the
country, insecurity took the place of the safety
which had obtained under Gordon's rule, the or
der he had established gave way to anarchy.
ha OH ms off oLndt 70
his standard, feeling that nothing could we'll be
worse than their present condition, and finally
when affairs were at their worst last winter the
eyes of the English government became opened
to the fact that there was one man in the world
capable of doing all that human power could pos
sibly avail to do toward a restoration of some
thing like order in the Soudan; and, at the last
moment when days further de-