Arizona republican., 1910-04-26
MAD MULLAH TOLLS ENGLAND
MUCH MONEY AND MANY LIVES
 WASTED IN soMALiLAND.
Ten Years of Fighting and the Es- penditure of Millions Ending in Decision to Evacuate the Country Natural Obstacles and Fanaticism Win Out

That torrid part of northeastern Africa which is washed by the Gulf of Alden and the Indian Ocean and is called Somaliland has been made so hot for the British that they have de- cided 10 haul down their flag and march their soldiers down to the coast. IL is the intention 10 retain for q limited time garrisons at two parts. ZeiIa and Bulhar. but eventual ly the British ;sag in Somaliiand will fly over a single port. Berbera, which is to be provided with modest de- fence.
 This evacuation Is not particularly pleasant task for the British. for be- sides being under the necessity of talk ing down their flag it means turning the country over to their old enemy the Mad Mullah. To add still further To their discontinue no sooner had they begun evacuating than the Null lah started out to celebrate his vic- tory by making war on all the tribes that had remained friendly to Euro pean interests. laying waste vast tracts of land, raging towns and mas sacring defenceless people.
 The whole episode is somewhat dismal.' is a London comment. That seems to be about the best that can he made Of it. for it is not agreeable tO confess, as John Dillon did the other day in the House of Commons, that Somaliland had cost millions of money and many lives and yet in the ten years war that had been waged against the enemy the Mad Mullah had come out uniformly the better.
 The principal reason why the coun- try has been so difficult to hold in the face of the Mullah's opposition has been rather it's natural defences than his strength. In the spring and sum- mer the land is pitiless desert. all most entirely devoid of vegetation of any kind. and the only water is in wells sometimes ten or fifteen miles apart and at places known only to the natives.
 It was for this reason that so many of the expeditions to the interior met defeat The soldiers lost their way in the desert and when exhausted by the heat and want of water they were set upon by the Mullah's forces and easily beaten.
 The Mad Mullah. or as he is known to his countrymen Mohammed Bui Abdullah. first came to the attention of the British in 1899 through a des- patch that said he was the leader of an uprising in the interior of Somali- land. It was at the time suggested that a military promenade" be un- dertaken against him
 That promenade grew into a desul- tory campaign which took up three years and cost the government Sl5.- 000, ,0e0. Even then his power was only temporarily broken by the battle of Jidballi, for he fled with a remnant of his forces to Italian territory. destroy ing in his way the wells and thus making pursuit impossible.
 Before he had undertaken this open warfare or before the British knew of him he had secretaly ;ived the way for his trouble making by his zeal in preaching the Moslem faith. He began among his own tribe and then reached out to the lesser religious chiefs of the country. but he augmented his in fuence by making pilgrimage to Mecca
 With the increase of his power he began a crusade. which with the help of dervishes extended over the whole of Somaliland. He preached war pure and, simple for the protection, and glory Of Islam and advocated the ex- termination of the whites.
 . It soon became evident that he was q religious fanatic of persuasive quali- ties. and his early successes had tendency to make him converts and to collect around him a following imbued with his own rabid ideas. He was. however. only one of the twelve or fifteen religious leaders of Somaliland. and many of these had sworn fealty tn the British and were not to be won oyer by his teachings.
 It was fortunate for the British that