New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-08-04
THEIR MISSION TO CONQUER THE WORLD.
HISTORY OF THE INVASION OF UPPER EGYPT
nv rur r,N.rrCAI. DESERT HORDES.


HISTORY OF THE INVASION OF UPPER EGYPT
BY THE FANATICAL DESERT HoRDEs.
For years the fighting tribes on the Upper Nile have
been I'm state of hostility toward Egypt and since
Great Britain has had troops in the country their
quarrel has also been with the English These people
are now called dervishes that is fanaical Mussulmen
warriors The impulse that has driven them on Is
partly physical, partly religious During GoronS uine
they were led by the Mahdi. The Mahdi whose
followers killed General Gordon at khartoum, Is
supposed be dead, but the Khaa Abdullah, though
his rule IS not accepted implicitly had enough
strength and religious fanaclsm 10 equip Wadel-
Njumi and send him 10 invade Egypt with thousands
Of his followers. These men have absolute, I'M
reasoning neradcable faith In their mission, which
t. to conquer tho world In this task they know they
msst either kill or be killed. They VIII not make
terms and scon at any summons to surrender. Inc
dervishes ar the Of those companions
Of the Prophet and his successors for three or four
generations who swept over the north OF Africa and
asia with irresistible force. Then they carried all
before them but now civilization has found means,
chiefly in the shape of breechloaders TO check and
destroy them.
When tho soudan was abandoned the choice OF
frontier lay between Dongoa and Waiy Haua. BE
twccn the two Is a stony desert 1t was assumed uat
this desert would form a sufficient Obstruction to the
unsettled tribes Of the Soudan, but military men con-
sidered that the surrender OF DOngOla was Idcuca
blunder To this surrender Is due the yearly attacks
from the dervishes This year there have been sew
eral cugagements with the dervishes. On July :
Colonel Wodehouse. commander of the Egyptian al
vance g1lari dealt Wad-eEN'JumI severe blow at
Arcup. lie killed 500 dervishes and took as many
mo1s prisoners, but he was not strong
enough to stop their march northward The
dervishes marched slowly northward. but thirst
worked destruction among their ranks, and the main
body was much weakened by desertions when II
reached the wells OF Abou Simbel, between "ady
Ualfa and Assouan. As b the strength Of the
dcr,isbcs the accounts conflicting. The secretary
of N,nmfs chief Emir, upon July ID, declared that
tbev numbered l4,OOO, of whom 5000 were hghtng
men the rest were slaves or csmpfolowels. As
MANY Of these disappeared later it was estimated
ouard the close OF July that the lighting force OF
81. onemy numbered between 5000 and 1000 Prepara-
,Iors we're made by the Egyptian and British com
arders to organize force large enough 10 JUSTLY
hr attacll on the dervishcs about the end OF JuS
bc hIoodv hattie they prepared for has eohs anu u,o I
itnrv l. told i'm the dispatches from ENPl. hesuo
,he black troops OF Egypt excellent hghng % mein'
rn1er tbc command of General Grrnfel cOHI.d,,el 3
49,, cLiof nj the Khedive's troops, thew were AZ las
,hros hattalons of British troops under the conau
1 of General DOrmer. - - tyb,tifa trat ~
As force wa, destroyed another w0uld De Seu, !" 'A
f. place in an invasion of the Egyptian Hon'''