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missioned in the end of April instead of in the last days of August,
he might have accomplished his task. There is a pathetic sad-
ness in his statement (25th October)–"the labour of working up
this river is immense." It was only on that day that the first
whale boat was hauled through the great gate of the second Cata-
ract at Wady Halfa, though in "nuggers" troops had arrived at
Dongola in September.

On the 2nd November the sad tidings of the loss of the Abbas
steamer near Merawi, with Colonel Stewart and his companions
(18th September), reached Wolseley's people near Korti.

Military authorities have described the campaign; and here it is
fitting to deal only with a few facts concerning the victim whose
fate, Lord Granville had graciously informed him, was interesting
to Her Majesty's Government.

As far as human mismanagement could prevail, that Govern-
ment had made it impossible for Gordon and Wolseley to meet in
the Soudan. But Gordon succeeded in sending a characteristic
letter, dated 4th November, to Wolseley (Blue-Book, Egypt, No. 1,
1885, p. 97): "... We can hold out forty days with ease; after
that it will be difficult. Terrible about loss of steamer. I sent
Colonel Stewart, Power, and Herbin down, telling them to give you
all information. ... We have occasional fights with Arabs.
Since 10th March we have had up to date, exclusive of Kitchener's
14th October, only two despatches; one, Dongola, with no date;
one from Suakim, 5th May; one of same import, 27th April. I
have sent out a crowd of messengers in all directions during eight
months. ... I should take the road from Ambukol to Metammeh,
where my steamers wait for you. ... The Arabs camped outside
Khartoum on the 12th March. We attacked them on the 16th
March, got defeated, and lost heavily, also a gun.* ... We have
built two new steamers. ... Your expedition is for relief of
garrison which I failed to accomplish. I decline to agree that it is
for me personally. ... We defended lines with wire entangle-
ments and live shells as mines, which did great execution. We
put lucifer matches to ignite them."

Gordon's last Journals tell us (15th November, when heavy
firing was being sustained): " I feel quite indifferent, for if not
relieved for a month, our food supply fails, and even at the above
rate of expenditure of ammunition we have fifty days cartridges. I
like to go down with our colours flying."

On the 5th December there were only "737 ardebs of dhoora, 121,300 okes of biscuit in store." On the 10th he wrote:Truly I

* It was on the 1st May, after much fighting at Khartoum had been reported, that
Gladstone declared that he "adhered to his opinion that there is no military danger at
the present moment besetting Khartoum."