The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1896-10-02
DERVlSH VAL0R.
Reckless Courage Of tho Mahdist
Followers In the soudan.
Standing Steadily for Hours
Against Fearful odds

palgna against the Mahdista. all allow
that the Dorvishes have lost nothing
Of their old yalor. They heed death
as little as ever / saw them stand
undismayed IN the open and fight with
logged determination in the face Of
our deadly volley Are they fought on
with rifle aud spear aud knife when
charged by the cavalay each wounded
Deryish, as he lay bleeding to death
on the ground, was dangerous and
treacherous foe until be had breathed
his last; they even did what some
authorities have denied that any
troops, however brave, would ever do
they stood in groups firing steadily
into our ranks while our Maxim guns
poured their streams OF bullets on
them, moving them down like grass.
doubt whether any other men in
the world would have stood, as these
men stood, for nearly two hours
against such fearful odds as were OPP
posed TO them.
But if one may Judge from this
fight, the Dervishes have changed their
old tacticsi they have to a great ex-
tent abandoned the reckless rush of
spearmen which used to distinguish
Sudanese warfare, aud rely more on
rifle fire, in which their practice has
considerably improved. II trained
and disciplined Out it is very doubt
full whether that savage beast of prey
the Baggara ever could be tamed),
these men would make magnificent
infantry They display now as much
amazing GOODNESS when acting on the
defensive as they did wild elan
in their furious charges of form
er campaigns. During one part of
the fight 1 was with the men of
the Ninth Sudaneso Battalion who
were clearing the hills to the east OF
Ferkeh, and I saw a handful OF twen-
ty-fve of the enemy's ridemen stand
firm and fire into us until we we're
twenty yards from them, when they
in vain sought safety in fight The
majority of these rihemen were blacks
of the same stock rs the men of our
Sudanese battalions; it is therefore
possible to form some idea of how the
latter will fight if caught in a tight
corner" The Khalifa's black rife
men, or Jehadia, for the most part
fight unwillingly in the cause OF the
tyrant who has ruined their country
and would gladly desert to us; but
once in the thick of fight they for
get all this, their blood is up, and they
set to as if imbued with fanatical
frenzy.
In my last letter recorded an in
cident itnessed-that of one of our
Sudanese soldiers rushing from the
ranks to embrace a prisoner who had
inst been taken and whom he recog-
nized as a relation. Similar strange
meetings occurred over the whole
field. A man of the Ninth Battalion
found his father dead among the
enemy. Again, when the men of the
Tenth Battalion were attacking the
enemy's riverside position, they were
set to clear a hut held by a number of
desperate men, who fired on
them from the loopholes with
considerable effect AT last nearly
all the defenders were killed and the
few survivors surrendered and came
out, among them big black who, no
doubt, mp to that moment had been
doing his best to kill as many Of our
men as possible; but as soon as he APP
peared soldier laughingly ran for
ward and put his arms around his
meek; then several others, recogniz-
ing in him an old friend whom they
had not seen for years, welcomed him,
their faces beaming with pleasure, and
there was a general embracing all
round. No fewer than 100 of the
black prisoners whom we took during
the fight Of the 7th have already been
enlisted in the Sudanese battalions. -
London Times.