THE OFFICIAL ACCOUNT OF THE DISASTER. Faraz Pasha's Treachery.

Te Aroha News, Volume II, Issue 93, 14 March 1885, Page 6

THE OFFICIAL ACCOUNT OF THE DISASTER. Faraz Pasha's Treachery.

General Wciseley reports to the Government as follows: -"Although Mahdi's irregulars are reported gathering round the point where the English vessels are wrecked, no su-picion of treachery is entertained. The wreck of the steamer is due to the hurried retreat at night and the altered current of tho river, which had fallen two feet in a single day. Some of our marks men say the enemy are lining with earthworks both banks of tho river for two miles not thof Khartoum. Theynumberaltogother about f,oo'>, of whom 2 000 ire indifferent riflemen. Four good shots from the Sussex Regiment repeatedly silenced one of MahrHV Krupp guns. During tho darkness the steamers slippo'l past the rebels and shot over the rapids, and arrived within sixty miles of tho fort, when one of them grounded The second stranded twenty miles lower down, where Col. Wilson and the Sussex detachment still remain. Col. Wortley, with three English soldiers and a p irty ot natives, in a bout, teiched here at 8 o'clock this morniug, Febiuary 6th. Sir Charles Bere?ford started with twenty picked marksmen from the Royal Rifles, this afternoon, to attempt to relieve them. Col. Wortley had rowed forty or fifty miles during tho night. All of Colonel Wilson's stores and ammunition ism deep water, and beyond vecovory. All wore lo?t by the wrecking of the steamers Colonel Wilson's party have entrenched themselves on Sandy Island. The steamers, while £oing up tho River, travelled princi pally by night, to avoid the exceedingly hot fire, which ceased whon a man advanced with a white flag, bearing a letter from El Mahdi to the English ofiiceis, in which it was stated that Khaitoum iud boen captured without firing a shot. The city and Goneral Gordon are now in his hands. Colonel Wil-on ascertained that Khartoum fell on the ni^ht of January 27th. Faraz Pasha and other Egyptian rebels onterdd into secret negotiations with Mahdi to pet all the Egyptian troops on one side of the city. While one detachment attacked the boats, another would open the land way On the third day of the journey up the river the natives shouted from the bunk to Wilson that Khartoum had fallen. The enemy was found well entrenched on the river bank " Five nativps prosent at the surrender of Khartoum declare that the rebels admitted the treachery of the Pashas who had been formerly punished by General Goi-don. It is imported that the officers- commanding tho threesteamers which remained at Khartoum took Mrthdi 1 * troops to tho main gate of the city, where they were admitted under daikness of night. Before Colonel Wil.son abandoned hi«« attempt lo reach Khartoum his little steamer sustained a four-hour fire of 700 riflemen, eight Krupp guns, and eight machine gun**. The Arabs showed splendid practice in handling the large guns. The water in the Nile was rapidly fullino, and navigation in the river about Metammeh will soon be impracticable. The troops at Gubat are cheerful, but the officer" ace fretful and dis appointed over the absence of reinforcements and of Wolseley. On his way from Gubat to Khartoum, on January 26th, Colonel WiUon was told by the natives along: the Nile that Gordon had been fighting hard for fifteen days. The natives report that the Mahdi has 30,000 men scattered between Berber, Shendy, and Metammeh. The force afc the latter place is daily receiving reinforce ments.