The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-09-09
People Over Whom He Ruled
Will Not Mourn for Him.
He Was Intensely Vain, Proud,
Cruel and Quick Tempered.

Nhoin the Anglo Egyptlan eXpedltOn II
now operating. Beyond saying that tho
khalifa died at Boga. the dispatch gives
no details
Abdullad ct Taishi, khalifa. was ths
most powerful and successful OF the threa
khalifas of the three leading Arab tribes
that in 1882 helped the mahdi to over
throw the government Of Egypt in thu
eastern Soudan and establish the Mahdist
despotism in its place. Each OF these
khalifas commanded a distinct section
of the mahdi's army. and Abdullah's
force had most 10 do with the annihila-
tion of General Hicks and his army.
Abdullah was the only man who could
maintain the strange empire he had
raised and kept the upper hand Of the
rapacious Soudanese tribes. Before his
death the mahdi nominated Khalifa
Abdullah as his successor. and thus thu
cruel and tyrannical Arab tribe OF tha
Baggaras, whose leader was Abdullah,
became the masters OF the Egyptian
Soudan and ruled IL with rod of iron.
The mahdi died on June 22. 1855. aftet
three years of power. and Abdullah has
since been known as ''the mahdis sucs
cessor." There was intense jealousy and
disappointment on the part Of the Dans
agla and Jaalin tribes, who have been
the rulers. but now became the ruled
Civil war on account of Abhdullah's ac<
cession was narrowly averted, but he was
too strong for his enemies I'm the other
tribes, and they finally chose the part Of
discretio just when all had been made
ready for battle. The new ruler them
made IL his business to render the ot2le1
tribes harmless. He reduced the power
OF the other two khalifas. and they bes
came men OF little influence. He sent
many OF the Jaalin and Danagla emirs
in chains hundreds of miles up the Nile,
and he permitted his Baggara to plundeH
the other tribes without mercy. under
the pretext of ievying taxes. There has
been only one ruler of the Soudan for tho
past al years, and he has been
Khalifa Abdullah. He maintained his
policy OF cruelty repressing all the peo-
pie, except his own tribe. until three Oh
four months ago. Then he was frights
ened very badly by the news that Eng
land and Egypt were getting ready to
Invade the country and overthrow his
power
The khalifa's empire. within which not
particle of European influence has
permeated since the madhi captured
Khartoum, extends from the vest
ern linr4ts OF Kordofan to Abyssinia on
the east, and embraces about 100000
square miles During the IL years he has
controlled the destinies of the Egyptian
Soudan, Ii Is estimated that nearly
three-ffths of it's inhabitants have per>
ished through war and famine. Con-
stant warfare has greatly diminished
the male population. Omdurman foB
years has been full Of women who had
neither husband nor male relations
Owing to the state OF affairs. the khalifa
decreed. some years ago, that every uns
married woman in Omdurman must be
provided with a husband within threo
days, or she would be handed over to a
Baggara as slave or concublpe. There
was great giving In marriage in the next
three days.
If Abdullah is dead. he has fallen while
still almost a young man. for he wae
only 46 years old this year. He was q
Baggara, with dark, coffee-colored cons
plexion. his face much marked by SMALL
pox. He had a long and prominent nose
and wore short beard. according to thu
Moslem custom. He could never cons
ceal his Baggara accent and dialect in
speaking Arabic. He WAS gifted by na~
ture with tremendous energy and com<
mon sense, but he had no education what
ever. He could not read or write, and
fer this reason he would never accep. u
written petition. He was very cruel by
nature, while the mahdi was naturally
humane. In the terrible days of the
famine, when bones were ground to
powder, made into a sort of bread, ana
eaten with eagerness in Omdurman. the
khalifa showed no mercy, pity or desire
TO relieve these terrible suffrngs. He
did not care lot for any of the people
except his Baggara, and ne made sura
that they were all well fed. lie treated
the white prisoners in hig hands with
great cruelty. except few whom he
could make useful to him, and their en-
joyment of his favor was spasmodic and
uncertain.
Like the mahdi, Abduliah wished to
destroy even the recollection of the old
regime under the Egyptian government.
This is the reason that they destroyed
so many of the old towns which had at
.ained some measure OF prosperity un-
der the Egyptians. Old Berber was de-
serted and new Berber wns built by this
khalifa's command juxt north Of the old
town. This is the reason. and the Only
one, why by far the finest city In tropical
east Africa was laid In ruins. IL was
the work of tho khalifa. He left hardly
one stone upon another In khartour.
Both t0tncr OnrulhiuSF &ilN Sia1iH
Pasha has told that the khalifa was
intensely vain and proud, cruel and
quick tempered. He adhered very strictly
to the prescribed forms Of prayer, and
insisted that the people should be humble
ana devout, though himself. of late years,
has lived in part the life OF a voluptuary.
But ne did not permit pleasure 10 inter-
fere with Affairs of state. lie was a man
of great activity. and directed all inn
portant business In person. He aiso re-
eeived the reports on the most trivial
affairs, and was always overwhelmed
with business. For two or three years
past he had given rather less attention
so business. and more TO his numerous
family Of wives All the judges were his
tools, and thus the khalifa secured Ia his
own person the right 70 pAsdsn az -
convict lie was the absolute neseU ~
life and death. NO privaeb persoa ~