The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1885-02-11
All Eyes Upon Africa! The Old
Struggle Between the Crescent
Of Mahomet and the Red
Cross of Britain, Re
newed .

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when the entire Western world watched
Richard Cour De Leon lead forth his
Lion-Legions to battle against the my
RAIDS of Islam.-the fanatical followers
Of the False Prophet of that age:
aud the face OF the globe has changed
very greatly changed. The tide Of
Christendom has westward worn its
way" until we have come to regard the
Oriental countries as far away, ancient,
efete, WORKOUT. almost forgotten Ike
the battles Of Alexander, or the crumb-
ling pyramids Of the Nile!
But in some strange way the creed
Of Mahomet contriycs to survive and to
continually call the attention of all man
kind to itselfat regular intervals. Many
Of our readers who do not call them
/ selves old, can recall the "Sepoy" Re
bellion in India. which took rise in the
refusal Of the native soldiers, or Sc
poys,'' to bite of the creased ends Of
their rilc-cartridges the latter having
been creased with lard, and it being SID
ful in Mahometan ewes to cat hog-meat.
\ few years after that war, came the
quarrel between Turkey and Russia,
now known as the "Crimean War;"
Later came the building, of the Suez
Canal which involved discussion among
the nations. Then the Afghan War.
Then the entrance Of Confederate o%tilcels
into the Egyptian army Then the Arab
Rebellion. the bombardment of AleXan-
dria. the battle of Tel-cl-keber etc.
| Then the rise Of El Mahdi, and all the
recent troubles. Thus has the Ban
| ner of the Faithful" (the old Leathern
apron which Mahomet wore when a
BLACKSMITH managed to keep itself not
only constantly III view but even to
inspire a certain degree Of respect ; for
Notwithstanding the apparent weakness
and efeteness Of the Oriental races no
nation has dared to interfere with their
religion. The Egyptians who are now
fighting Fl Mahdi are all good Mahome-
tans and one great danger which
threatens England at this hour is the
fear that other Mahomctan countries
may combine against her Were this
to occur the struggle would shock the
Globe: for the followers Of MahOmet
embrace nearly one third OF mankind,
exceeding all other religions, we believe.
And now the two great battles IN the
Desert, and the fall OF khartoum, have
set all the world to watching the cradle
Of our race. '-wherc fat little Moses play
ed among the buIrushes along the banks
Of the Nile.
\ sHOE~STRTNG COUNTRY.
To understand the campaign that is
row in progress you must remember that
Egypt Is not a strip Of land between
two States" but is a strip OF land on
each side of a long, narrow rivera
river which is 50 long that nobody knows
where it takes its rise; though Henry
Stanley Il few years ago claimed to have
discovered its source, and may have done
so for all we can tell. The river is with
out branches until you get 800 miles
from its mouth at khartoum, where it
divides into the white Nile" and the
BLUE Nile The city which Gen. Cor
don held for just twelve months stands
between the two rivers; and has HUGO
population; drawing a large trade from
the vast interior Of Africa by means OF
sailing boats which can come DOWN the
| river that far before they strike the Cat
aracts which made 1t impossible tor the
| British to 90 Up to khartoum. The
Nile is navigable at all seasons tor about
1000 miles inland; and this section IS
called upper Egypt, OF civilized Egypt.
A railroad runs to Stout, 500 miles
from the Pyramid Of Gizeh, which is
opposite Cairo, about 10 miles from the
SeacOaSt.
South OF this is the vast region 'the
Soudan, (which is termed Lower Egypt
and is nomira ally controlled by Egypt; but
which in reality is a different country, be-
ing peopled 10y hundreds Of Arabic tribes,
-nomads, wanderers, like our Indians,
having a general resemblance, but not
disposed to pay tribute to anybody, or
any ruler The single tie of Religion
binds them as IA Il. ton. The residents of
the large towns ike Suakim. Dongola
Berber and khartoum have had to wi
allegiance to Egypt, because garrison OF
Egyptian soldiers have been constantly
located in them: but outside the town
walls, the wild tribes laugh at the khe-
dives authority.
CAUSE OF II PRESENT WAR
The Egyptian government has always
been administered on the theory of the
Pharaohs VITO enrich the rich, and
rob the poor; and if any common person
refused TO make bricks without straw"
to whip him until he learned how TO get
straw. Things went frCm bad to worse
until finally England saw a chance to get
control of the country by forcing the
withdrawal of Ismael, and the elevation
of the present khedive, or Governor
General. Claiming that certain debts
due her citizens must be paid. she ere,
ated a kind of Military aud Financial
Commission to stay with the khedive,
and watch over the treasury, and keep
the whole government under its thumb.
But all these arrangements helped tC
increase the expense and divide the re
spousibility; so that the poor Egyptians
have had three "Plagues" at once En-
glisH Lords, Turkish Masters, and native
iicel As may be supposed such oppres'
created discomfort and finally a double
rebellion. Arab Pasha started the mill
tary revolt in Egypt; and Ell Mahdi star
ted a religious and rebellious uprising il
the Soudan. Arab was soon put down
railroads. But FL Mahdi was 1000 mile
from the sea and amid a race of hard!
Arabs, very different from mud-dabblin!
Egyptians. The result is different.
...George Francis Lathrop's move
of North Carolina life is based on tn
separation of two English lovers in tn