Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-07-25
Why the Mahdi's Fanattcal Followers
50 Reck less In Battle.

Why the Mahdi's Fanattcal Followers
are 50 Reck less I'm Battle.
The London Daily Telegraph comments in
| part as follows upon the Mahdis recent procla-
nation: Nor, perhaps, could the Mahdi better
| encourage the sinking spirits of men encamped
/ with but scanty shelter, and n still more scanty
/ commissariat, out upon the burning, eye-scOrch-
/ ing deserts of the Soudan, overswept with dust
storms driven along by the fierce khamsin, the
sitting harmattan, dry grain their food, aka
/ line water their drink and dreary marching and
! wounds and death their only service. "That
prophet ill slstains his holy call who finds not
| heavens to suit the tastes of ALL" And MahOmet
must be confessed, have found one very
| suitable indeed to the tastes OF Arab
folk. Their songs and their speech are
yearning of these wild sons of n sterile land for
the pleasures of green trees, sweet-smelling
| flowers and bubbling water. Religion offers
| them, these men of hard lives and stern work
| as the one supreme delight of the after world
| the luxury of idleness. They are not even to
roses to eat and drink; for exquisite beings,
blessed with perpetual grlhood, will always be
| at their side To offer them all they want before
| they can even ask for 1t. The fruit will bend
down to their lips. the fountains OF exquisite
| sherbets rise to them. They are never to grow
older than the prime of manhood, and, if they
| choose, need never, no, never, all through the
| cycles of Immortality, stir an inch from the
spot where angelic arms, carry ing each from the
battlefield, have laid him down on the perfumed
| sward under the tuoba tree. No more camels to
drive. No more infidcls To shoot them. Peace
and plenty. perpetual youth. and sacred lazi-
| ness. The birds even, in the bOughs, are only
to sing in mnrmnrops fashion: 50 ear-splitting
bOreal choir will all be beautiied nightingales
singing through wells, as it were, the softest
same long enough for the listener to recognize u
tune twice. The perfumes, in the same way,
VIII Slde imperceptiply from one fragrance to
another, and each in turn will be new and ex.
quisite. The shcrbcts will be nectareOus blend
inss OF all the hydromels somas and meads that
"CitieS of Rest and "Elysian Fields" and are
to pass by subtle transmutations from rose to
pomegranate, and from citron to date from
the pippins and berries of Paradisac orchards,
Favored with such fruits as saints have
worked miracles with, such as tempted
Eve, such as the champions of ChristendOm
knew of, as the pilgrims found in the Masters
garden, as heroes and goddeSses have striven
for-the appless OF bliss and immortality. The
hours, too-"the ds,rk-eyed maids above
even they are not To weary the eye by monOt-
ony. sixty is the smallest allowance, the
"htlf-rations, us ii were, of Il common Ordi-
nary sort of true believer. In exceptional cases
they to be in number beyond counting
and at the wish OF their posseSsor they will
change their age. their features. ana their voice
1t is not enough that they shall each be perfect
| i'll her own way; all are To be perfect in every
way. Then, to think oil it, Superadded to all this,
| the perpetual GOODNESS of thick foliage overhead
and gentle brceZeS, and above all. utter and ill.,
! violable lazincsS, 1t is wonder then that the
! Mahdi's soldiers, released from the drudgery OF
| beasts OF burden Only TO march and tight i'll the
/ desperate SOudan, escaped from the tyranny OF
petty masters to fall under the unrClaxing DIES
poti>m of Il fanatical leader, should go to their
I deaths lightly. They believe, with stern faith
! every iota of the promises of future pleasures
! held out To- them. and on that belief gladly
stake the wrctchedncss of their life and risk the
| bricfagony of death ON the battlefield. Faith
/ frcnzied faith. once welded firm and fast to
some dear fil,ehood. hugs it To the last and
/ those who were in the Soudan bore ample testi-
mony to the amazing. bcwilderin, eckles>ness
| and disregard OF pain with which the soldiers
I OF the Mahdi come charging on to their fate.
The truth Is, they looked beyond the British
| squares at the green groves of paradise. The
! glitter of the grim bayOnets before them was as
nothing to the radiance of the great gates they
could see opening TOR them. In front the fash
of rifles and the low rolling smoke of the can
| non. duh masses of men in gray, and cames in
tumultuous motion. But further off and visible
only 10 the eyes or those on-rushlng families
were the fiutterng of robes of green silk the
simmer OF golden ornaments. Here, close
at hand, were the furious roar OF the artil-
lery. the pitie>s fu>illade, the fierce camor of
men giving and receiving death; but, above it
| by his mortal wound. caught the sweet
| fittings OF heavens singing birds, the
babblin"s of the fountains of Zcm-zem the
whispered caresSeS OF those hidden pearls 1.-The
maids" SO they came on in a rush all together,
death (which leads to paradise Out from the
bush. and from behind rocks, they came on,
one against hundred dancing and shouting.
What if they fell? 1t an infidel's hand
that laid them low. Their end was achieved.
OR. if they reached the unbclicver's line and
drove their spears nome before they went down
before the bullets all the eater was the gain
all the larger was tine fuliness of eternal bliss
The leaders OF Islam have always
known how to avail themselves of this
intense confidence in the immediate pos
session of paradise. MOhammed himself never
failed to employ tx to the utmost. and his sue
cessprS. on many Il field of victory, have proved
Its potency. the MoSem sees his reward actu-
ally within his arm length. He has only to
strike and il Is his. Ii he kills, is killed, he
l. assured Of the Prophets favor, and if he dies
KILN" he is dOubly secure. The lives of such
men are, after all. but duh processes. Their
language, their philosophy prove that they feel
this Themselves. They DO not cling to life as a
away. allah : will be done. and there is an
Mahdis proclamation, the fact that his toll
lowers are clarnoring to- be allowed to go to
Mecca, we shall probably hear more later for
in the Moslem creed the performance of 'the
greater pilgrimage" is in itself a passport to
paradise For the present, however. it is enough
To have noticed the strange phenomenon of
such an appeal in these latter days OF history
and To have limited ut the pathOS which under
lies II. Here lighting in the SOudan under Il
san that Is now tOrrid, in the midst of Il cOun-
Try brought II the miserieS of famine by three
years of war. we find military leader calling
upon his troops To stand by him and to rally tor
further effort. with the promise of shady trees
and cool water They are not to strike Tor coun-
try. or for sovereign. for God. but for refresh
ing draughtS and the smiles of the hOurs of
heaven. And this sufiiceS.