New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-07-24
A DAY ON THE ATBARA.
THE PLEASURES OF WAR CORRESPOND
ENCE IN THE sOUDAN
G. ". Stevens. in The London Outlook.

& ". Stevens in The London Outlook.
Camel corps luch." said the Bimhashi. and
smiled bitterly. then swore. % my GOO II this
is the big show
Climbing up over sandbags on to one OF the
run platforms u Fort Atbara We crouchcd IN
the embraSurc and listened. loom boom -
boom: very faint but very distinct ana al mar
minute intervals We had ridden in the day
before from the Slrdars camp up the Atbara 10
buy more bottled fruit ard. alas more gin from
the Greek shanlies on the Nile beach. a con-
voy on 4 similar errand had been attacked ny
Deryishes haif an hour after "e had passed IT,
yet We heard not a shot. To-day. all this way
of. We heard plainly. II must be an action in
deed. Our OWN army. know. was not TO
move Could L be that Mahmud had come
down AMI was attacking us AZ Ahadar' And
We eighteen miles away at Fort Aftara and
down there in the sarl-driN roadway. the
webbing crousing Cameis tina, were 10 be-
conveyed oGt AZ two miles an hour We joined
The Bimhashi and cursed r..s iably Oh the
Chance ~ j..
Iut I'D. we struggled to persuade ourselves It
couldn't Doe 50 bad as that Il must be 4
battalion come out q clear The road for our
convoy or il must be the reconnaissance" that
was going up 70 The Derv.sh zariba at Max
h "a. Correspondents are not allowed TO 70
with TcC l1nolssaUDDs 50 that If II is only that
there's no great loss after all. Anyhow. IL is
II O'Clock now. The baggage Camcls have
l5.oped on; undor the mud suar1housc. through
the s0rt gate through the gap in tin mimOsa-
thorn zarlaa The camel corps escort is closing
" IN rear. w- are of
Hal a mile ahead ride five blacks. their cam
els keeping perfect line. The sun flashes
angriy on their rilc barrels. but they look him
steadily In the face. peering with puckcfcd
eyes over the desert below them in this land
Of dus. and JOSS scrub a camcfs hump is almost
8 war balloon. Far out on their right see a
var.ly Advancing dot which is four more. a
black dot on the rising leftward skyin" three
more. our ~ the right flank % the baggage
cames shaving the river side thickots. CLEAN
white spider re. which are a couple Of camel
Troopers r r. They stop and examine n track
they break into trot and disappear behind a
palm dump they reappCar walking. But the
main force ~ the two companies rides close |
about the Swimming quadrangle % baggage cam
es-in front on flank in rear Slowly and |
seeply Oh" mass - Lcasts strolls on into the |
1es IT. carci rs what hCrscncn might he wheel |
AS into line behind the ridge or what riAemon |
'Mght be amhushod in the scrub. But the |
scouts in front are looking at every footprint. |
Dyer every skyline. behind every ciump Of cam
t,horn
T. be- ol' e an exciting action is camel corps |
l-h, THIS j. CANCEL corps work. The Bimbashi |
-Binbashi means "caI tain Of thousand"
ana the st0.d Occidental translates 1t major |
.SS'd hls part ~ the reconnaissance 10 ride +,
az night ard guard the mcnaced convoy. he |
'eW one hour 20 dawn. and now returns In the |
sun re Is quite fresh and active. This is his |
usual work. bat be is Lot happy because this
-.'D is DIS D.. val X. only the Egyptian Army
"oud have found ID very difficult 10 DO with
'4' nm ana bis dcscr. cavalry in the past and
.'eh no." With all the desert roads except the
ayu1a behind H. finds plenty 81 work for the |
amel co'Is s.4. And one day they say. take
,4' twenty olwo.s.' and the noEt day Take out
.le T.'t' The noyt day "Thosr tHcni. that
't'ent out to-day can't possibly be tired"
94t the Ilm1ash goes out every day. The
nm IS scaled If his nose with sun. ana his eyes |
ie boof bot with sand. and the hairs Of his
,.1s'a, DE have snapped IF short with drouth.
A'u ms hair is bleaching 10 white. All that
the hallmark Of the Souddn.
oe'|As into The saddle had been Ike sitting