The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1915-10-31
How a Hero Died
By ARTHUR LEE KNIGHT.

]
In 1854 Charles George Gordon was sent
| by his government to put down the rebel
lion started by the Mahdi in the Sudan
and was besieged by the fsnaticsl Arab
warrior-prophet at Khartum. This is an
account OF what happened at the time.
The time is October. 1855.
The relief expedition, tardily sent out
4 by the British government, Is on its way
| up the Nile. under the command OF Lord
wolseley-destined. alas. to be too late.
Gordon had in September sent down the
Nile the steamer Aobas, on board Of
which. were Col Stewart. Mr.. Power.
newspaper correspondent: NJ Herbin. the
/ French consul; eighteen Greeks and
/ about fifty soldiers. These people would
/ all have remained most willingly in
khartum with the governor. but the lat
ter had unhesitatingly decided that they
could be Of more real assistance to him
I by returning 10 Cairo. and conveying his
journals, dispatches. and kilograms to
headquarters.
It was the first set in a terrible trag-
edv. The unfortunate Abbss. which was
a light paddle-wheel steamer. ran upon
the rocks of Oar Djuma while descend
ing the Nile. and became a total wreck.
Col. Stewart and his companions con-
fding rather unwisely in the promises of
some treacherous Arabs. were all foully
murdered, and. as a consequence. all the
valuable dispatches and journals were
lost forever.
II was on September q that the i'm
portant news reached Gordon that his
old friend Lord wolseIey was actually
on the way with a relief expedition. On
the 3Oth he dispatched his armed steam
ers TO Metemma that they might meet
and cooperate with the advancing Eng
lish army. Their captains had orders to
proceed to Shendy or Berber II necessary.
BY this move. vitality important as it ap-
peared to Gordon. he seriously weakened
both his offensive and defensive powers
in Khartum-probably by one-half.
But at that time. although desultory
fighting had been going on for some time
around the city. the latter was not by
any means completely invested. The
Mahdi himself had not as yet arrived
upon the scene OF action. being still far
away in Kordofan; while the warlike
shieks he most strongly relied upon as
the backbone of his military power, e.
obeid and Negumi. were encamped. with
the greater part of their forces. upon the
banks Of the Blue and the White Nile, |
some considerable distance from the walls |
OF Khartum. There was no organized at |
tempt as yet to starve out the garrison |
and population of the capital OF the |
Egyptian Sudan; but this was soon to |
come, for the Mahdi was kept informed
by his spies of Lord wolseley's move
ments, and knew that he must act at
once and with vigor IL he intended to
forestan the British general
On October u the Mahdi arrived IN
person before Khartum. accompanied by
large forces. The city was now invested
on all sides. and native treachery had
also begun to play its part and under
mine the influence OF the solitary heroic
Englishman. who day after day paced
WIN dnAious iootsNePs ine PdlaSe fooA'
trusting that he should soon see his
armed steamers returning up the Nile,
carrying detachments of British regi-
ments on their decks.
But little did Gordon know of the vex-
stious delays which were hampering the
OF the relieving force. At
the time the Mahdi arrived before Khar-
tum the British troops were stin only at
wady Halfs, 800 miles away.
Fighting was going on constantly in .