, 1890-01-11

His cause" Possessed with such ~
belief, the Mahdi's lieutenant has of
course a very simple task before him.
He has heard good things of Emin
who sis intelligent and understands
"good advice" and therefore he
is all the more ready to invite him
10 partake OF the infinite compass
sion OF the Mahdi. 1t is curious
that the altern alive course is not
even suggested in the letter; perhaps
because of Emin'S known Intelligence"
which must lead him to adopt the truth
the moment it is offered him. But if Omar
Saleh II is too polite to mention in so many
words what the result of Emin's refusal
must be, he is at pains to describe the his
tory of the movement, and the wonders
with which it has been accompanied. The
Mahdi, according to him, has once been
hard pressed, but he has never been de-
feated. One after another he has destroy
ed the people sent against him, and has
blotted out ''the Turks" who saw the won.
ders and fOrewarnings and did not believe.
First came the army of AbOu Soud Bey,
who attacked him at Abba then follow.
ed the Kordofan merchants then Hicks.
"'a renowned man." with y large army
and many Krupp gun s. All were killed
we know from LuptOn Bey's letter that
only SO survived out of an army of 10000
and then followed the attack on Khar-
toum. The terrible tory is told in the
briefest words; only that the Khar-
tOum victory seems to have struck the
MahdiSt imagination more than the others,
since Omar Saleh vOHcheS, as an eye
witness, for prOdigies here-enemies burnt
up with fire, flames blazing at the points
Of the Believers Spears-which he does
not mention else where.
He goes on to descr ibe the expeditions
of the two Stewards, and the invasion of
Abyssinia, which ha d no permanent re.
suit, and the "bele aguering of Egypt
at Wady Halfa." Of course he admits no
defeats but it must be remembered that
the letter was written long before'the bat
tie of TOSki. He gives, too, but little
news ofthe European prisoners; but what
he says is inter esting and, as far as it goes,
cheering. He has letters he says from
"Abdul Kader Slatin,' from "Abdullah
Lupton' and 9th ers, all written to show
how prosperous they are. Unfortunately
none of these are forthcoming none were
sent when the Mahdist General learned
that the officers were intending to fight.
We have, however, the three letters
which were written to Emin by LuptOn
lust before his men all left him and he was
taken prisoner, now more than five years
ago. He expected, in the first, to fight
and die but his sol diers all deserted, and
he seems to nave S urrendered. We may
hope that the accO unit given Of him four
wears later by Omar Saleh was not out
rageously false, and that he had settled
down into some kind of tolerable exis-
tepce. Bat - ugh the prospect for a few
individuals may be bearable, that does not
alter the fact that, for our time at least,
the Equatorial Provinces of Africa per
haps we may say all the vast regions known
as the SOudan-are lost to civilization.
Such order as was introduced there by
Ismail Pasha, and others after him, was
introduced too early. The country was
not ready for ii, and the population was
large enough and rich enough to resent
and reject the foreign influence decisively.
The combination of religious frenzy AMI
of slave-trading interest has been too
much for the resistance of a handful OF
Europeans and their "Turkish" followers.
All this is matter for profound regret;
but we must find our consolation in the
unparalleled development of Eastern and
Southern Africa, tunder British impulsiOm
and influence. It has yet to be ascertain
ed whether Mr.. Stanley, and perhaps Emin
Pasha, will throw in their lot with the
Eastern Company, which assuredly has %
great future, though not perhaps SO great