TAKING OF KHARTOUM.

Kumara Times, Issue 2741, 4 July 1885, Page 2

TAKING OF KHARTOUM.

THE NARRATIVES OE EYEWITNESSES. o Two men have been interviewed by the Dongola correspondent of the London Daily News. They were soldiers in Gordon's army, taken at the time and sold as slaves, bnt who ultimately escaped. Their names are Said Abdullah aud Jacoob Mahomet. The correspondent writes : I will let tbem tell their own history. After stating that they were taken first to Omdurman subsequently to the capture of Khartoum, were then stolen by Arabs and sold to two Kabbabash merchants, and afterwards escaped from Aboudom to Debbah, from which place they had reached Dongola, they went on to relate the doings of Farig Pasha previously to the taking of Khartoum. I have given you some account of this story by telegraph, and it has been partly made familiar substantially through other channels. They continued —"That night Khartoum was delivered into the hands of the rebels. It fell through the treach- ' ery of the accursed Farig Pasha, the Circassian, who opened the gate. May lie never reach Paradise ! May Shay tan take possession of his soul ! But it was Kismet. The gate was called 'Bouri.' It was on the Blue Nile. We were on guard near, but did not see what was going on. We were attacked, and fought desperately at the gate. Twelve of us were killed, and twenty-two retreated to a high room, where Ave were taken prisoners. " And now came the ending. The red flag with the crescent was destined no more to wave over the palace ; nor would the strains of the hymn of his Highness the Effendina be heard any more at evening within Khartoum. Blood was to flow in her streets, in her dwellings, in her very mosque, and on the Kenniseh of the Narsira. " A cry arose, 'To the palace! to the palace !' A wild and furious band rushed towards it, but they were resisted by the black troops, who fought desperately. They knew there was no mercy for them, and that even were their lives spared they would be enslaved ; and the state of the slave, the perpetual bondage with hard task-masters, is worse than death. Slaves j are not treated well, as you think; heavy

chains are round their ankles and middle, and they are lashed for the least offence till blood flows. We had fought for the Christian Pasha and for the Turks, and we knew that we should receive no mercy. We, the party I was with, could not help being taken prisoners. The house was set on fire. The fight raged, and the slaughter continued till the streets were slippery with blood. The rebels rushed onward to the palace. We saw a mass rolling to and fro, but did not see Gordon Pasha killed. He met his fate as he was leaving the palace, near the large tree which stands on the esplanade. The palace is not a stone's throw, or at any rate a gunshot distance from the Austrian Consul's house. He was going in that direction, to the magazine on the Kenniseh, a long way off. We did not hear what became of his body, nor did we hear that his head was cut off; but we saw the head of the traitor Farig, who met with his deserts. We have heard that it was the blacks that ran away, and that the Egyptian soldiers fought well. That is not true. They were craven. Had it not been for them, in spite of the treachery of many within the town, the Arabs would not have got in, for we watched the traitors. And now fearful scenes took place in every house and building, in the large market-place, in the small bazaars. There were the same terrible scenes in the dwellings where the window-sills and door-lintels were painted azrek (blue), where there had been many feasts and fantasias, where merissa had flowed in plenty, and where the walls were built of wahal and the roof built of dhoora stalk. Men were slaiu shrieking for mercy, when mercy was not in the hearts of our savage enemies. Women and children were robbed of their jewels of gold and jewels of silver, of their bracelets, necklaces of precious stones, and carried off to be sold to the Bishareen merchants as slaves—yes, and white women too—Egyptians, and Circassians who wore the burko (faceveil) over their faces,' the rabtah (headdress), and the tnrbah (embroidered muslin), and the kurs (gold ornaments) on their heads—ladies clad in silk and satin gibbehs and sultahs (cloaks and jackets), Mother and daughter alike were di-agged off from their homes of comfort. These were widows, wives, and daughters of Egyptian officers, some of whom had been killed with Hicks Pasha ; wives and children of Egyptian merchants formerly rich, owning ships and mills, gardens, and shops. These were sold afterwards, some for 340 thaleries or more, some for 250, according to age and good looks. And the poor black women, already slaves, and their children were taken off too. These were sold, too, for 100, 80 or 70 thaleries. Their husbands and masters were slain before their eyes ; and yet I hear it said there was no massacre at the taking of Khartoum ! They lie who say so, and are in league with Mahomet Achmet. You must not believe all that men coming from Omdurman tell you. Mahomet Achmet and the dervisher send you false reports of everything, and you believe them; then they laugh. The fighting and spilling of blood continued till dohr (noon), till the sun rode high in the sky—red, yet darkened by smoke and dust. There was riot and clamour, hubbub and wrangling over spoil; cursing was heard till the hour of evening prayer. But the Muezzin was not called, neither were any prayers offered up at the mosque on that dark day in the annals of Khartoum. But the histories of those scenes will not be written on its records ; for all scrolls, and papers, and books in the archives were destroyed and scattered abroad. Yet the howling herd, possessed of afaseet and gin (evil spirits)—the screeching devils bespattered with gore, swarming about in droves and bands, found not the plunder that they had been promised or had expected. Then they were exasperated. Their fury knew no bounds, and they sought out Farig Pasha, but he was with the dervishes. He had presented himself to them as one deserving well of honour and rewards. " Where is the hidden treasure of the Greek merchants and Bachalees, of Leontides and Georgio Themetio ? Yes, and of the Franchesi Marquet, of the Italian Michaelo ? We know that you are acquainted with the secret hiding-place. Where are all the thaleries of Marcopolo and of the German tailor Klein ? We know that those who left Khartoum were unable to carry away their silver, and you know where it is hid." "The dervishes, seeing the tumult, questioned him sharply, and addressed him thus :—' The long-expected One, our Lord, desires to know where the English Pasha had his wealth. We know he was very rich, and every day paid large sums of money ; this has not been concealed from our Lord. Now, therefore, let us know, that we may bear him word where all the felluce (pay) he gave the troops is hidden, so that we may put it into the treasury. Let him be bound and examined in the inner chamber.' "Then were the doors of the house where the dervishes were, and the gates of the gardens outside—they were in the Jeneseh—closed against the Arab soldiery, and they were driven out, though angry words and threats were loudly heard. Farig was now questioned, but lie"swore bv Allah and the souls of his fathers back to three generations that Gordon had no money, and that he knew of no hidden money or treasure. 'You lie,' cried the dervishes. 'You wish after a while to come here, dig, and get it all for yourself.' "'lf the luglezze had no money or silver, how did lie make all those silver medals we have seen V "'Most of them arc lead,' Fari-* replied, 'and ho paid everyone with paper.' 'lt is false,' they replied, 'and now have a care ; listen to what we are going to say to you. Wo arcs smv you know where the money lies concealed. We are not careful of your life, for you have betrayed

the man whose salt you have eaten; you have been the servant of the infidel and vou have betrayed even him. Unless you nnfold this secret of > the buned treasure, vou shall surely die,' "But Fari«, it is said—for we were nob there-seeing that his end was approaching, that his words were not believed, assumed a proud and haught } bearing and an attitude of defiance _ <"I care not,' he said, foi your threat, I have' told the truth knows. There is no money, neithei is treasure. You are magnoons (fools) to suppose there is money; but it there were vou would not divide it faiUy Tmon- your followers-to everyone his. Trb?on. y You would keep it among yourselves I have done a great deed. I have delivered to your lord and master the city which you would never have Xn without my help. You wou d have bTen blaten back from the trenches by fcheln-lezze, who, even now, await their + and I have secrets Sffi Set, which, if I die, dies with ml I tell you again there is no treasure, out you will rue the day if you kill me. "One among the dervishes then stepped forward and struck him, bound as he was, in the mouth, telling him to cease his fool's prophecies ; while another, incensed rushed at him and struck him on the back of his neck with his two-edged sword, so that with one blow his head fell from his shoulders. , , .. v,-„ "So perished the arch traitor—may his soul be afflicted! But as for Gordon Pasha, the magnanimous, may his soul be 1 enioying fuller knowledge ! "I say nearly all the Egyptian men were slain, in spite of their casting themselves down, and praying for mercy. Fari" Pasha's head was then carried off to Mahomet Achmet. We heard this when the Kordofan soldiers, who guarded us at the Dormas gate, talked amongst themselves. We were there some days. We saw nothing ; but only heard what these soldiers told us. They said two steamers with English had come up and gone back. We have nothing more to tell you. Fariw Pasha was probably a Circassian ; was the name of the son of Berkook, founder of the Memlook dynasty. Hie story of these men, as far as it goes, seems untrustworthy. The Egyptians who have escaped declare that they alone fought, and the blacks gave in; no one believes this. '