Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-06-06

SlT IIclOSlt StSWuht -
! desert column on that heroic. but dis
astrous enterprise known as the Cor
don relief expedition-the relief Of
/; General Gordon from Khartum where
(, he had been entangled during the eva
cuation Of the Sudan. Kitchener deep
! ~ took to heart the lessons of that
fiasco, with its failure of transport and
! intelligence departments, and avoided
| these troubles in the expedition which
he himself led some years later. In the
meantime Kitchener was employed IN
innumerable fights and raids against
the dervishes or Madhists of southern
Egypt. In 1856 he became governor of
the Red Sea territorities and set in
motion series of raids on the notori-
Gus Osman Digna, the dervish leader.
In one of these raids Kitchener's men
were thanked and put to flight, during
which he received bullet which broke
his jaw
BY this time much was heard in
England of Kitchener's work in Egypt
and when he returned there for short
rest he was received with honor and
nominated aide de-camp of Queen
Victoria. With his health recruited, he
went back to Egypt where, on the res
| IShdliOIl VI Oh IL oASiASii' a.
was appointed sirdar (commanderi CO
the Egyptian army. His really great
career dates from that time.
Makes Bold Stroke.
AS an instance of the self-confidence
with which Kitchener undertook his
tasks in Egypt is recalled how he dealt
with the war office as few generals be-
fore him ever dared. On one occasion
he sent home for special kind of gun.
The war office suggested another KIND.
The sirdar repeated his orders. Next
he wss Informed that the war office
gun had been forwarded, whereupon
he dispatched a politely insolent mes
sage home saying that he was very
grateful, but the war office could keep
its guns. His message read: L can
throw stones at the dervishes myself
AS a consequence the guns he asked
for were forwarded without delay.
The Kitchener campaign that ended
with the recapture of khartum was
considered by military experts as per-
fectly organized and faultles sly con-
Quoted. The Egyptian army that
Kitchener had worked up to such re-
markable efficiency was, when he first
took charge of 1t, band of unpaid,
unfed and undermined fellaheen. 1t
was said to be an army without stom-
arch. heart or backbon but kitch-
ener worked over these helpless reeds
of broken natives and made of them
some of the finest of black battalions.
The fight at Omdurman. Sept ,,
1898, just across the Nile from khar-
tum, was the greatest battle of kitch-
ener's time in Egypt. Osman Digna
faced him with $4,000 Mahdists. while
he had but 10000 men. When the
battle was over II 900 of the Mahdists
had been killed outright. 10000
wounded. and 1000 taken prisoners
while the English and Egyptian loss
altogether was under 500 men.
Object Of Hero Worship.
With the capture of Khartum. cap |
ital Of the Sudan, which meant the re- |
establishment Of British pos session OF
these upper reaches of the Nile, Kitch-
ener became the object OF hero-wor-
ship in England. His campaign had !
been. and is TO this day. much crtti- |
cized, however. because Of its ruthless
ness. 1t was charged Kitchener
trampled on his foes in an almost bar
barous manner. On his return to Eng
land however, he was generous enough
TO ask his countrymen TO found a col
lege at Khartum wherein the sons or
the dervish chiefs he had fought and
overwhelmed might be educated in the |
knowledge of the west, request that
met with such response among the !
British people that the fund required |
was far over subscribed.
For his triumphs in the Sudan he !
was raised to the peerage as Baron !
Kitchener of khartum. and received |
the thanks Of parliament and grant |
of $3.50, 900 Shortly afterward he was |
promoted lieutenant general and then |
chief of staff to Lord Roberts in the |
South African war, and on Lord Rob- !
erts' return TO England in November. |
1900. succeeded him as commander-in-
chief in that field, BY constructing a |
$500 mile chain of block houses he
stopped the Boer raids and virtually
ended the war in South Africa. This
added to his popularity and prestige
at home, and he was rewarded by the
title Of viscount, promotion to the rank
of general for distinguished services.
the thanks of the parliament and a
grant Of s25o,Ooo-
Immediately after the peace General
Kitchener went to India as command
erin chief of the British forces there,
in this position which he held for
seven years. he carried out not only
many far-reaching administrative re-
forms, but a complete reorganization
and strategical redistribution Of the
British and native forces. On leaving
India in 1909 he was promoted field
marshal and appointed commander-in-
~ hi eyh IN IN c
Mediterranean, mad later on took a
tour of inspection of the forces Of the
entire empire. drawing up a scheme
of defense of the overseas dominions.
Governed Egypt.
He then returned TO Egypt, the scene
of his first triumph. in the capacity
of British agent and consul general in
Extraordinarily a governor general
ship of Egypt-and led in the economi-
cal development Of the country, build
ing new roads and irrigation projeceS
on large scale
pie had looked on Kitchener silent,
but effective work, they had never
been able to fathom his personality. A
cockney non-commssioned officer,
who had seen much service under him,
summed up the general opiniop when
he said Of Kitchener:
les no talker. Not i'm. 'Es all
steel and h'ice."
His face was that Of man who
neither asked for sympathy nor
wanted it.
He had steady, blue-gray passionless
eyes, and a heavy moustache covered
g mouth that sI1n. close and Firm like
a wolf trap. He believed with all his