Fire and sword in the Sudan - a personal narrative of fighting and serving the Dervishes, 1879-1895 (1896) (14780379905)

Identifier: fireswordinsuda00slat (find matches)
Title: Fire and sword in the Sudan : a personal narrative of fighting and serving the Dervishes, 1879-1895
Year: 1896 (1890s)
Authors: Slatin, Rudolf Carl
Subjects:
Publisher: London : Arnold
Contributing Library: Robarts - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto



Text Appearing Before Image:
ength, after a stay of six days at Kamo, Salehcame to me with the satisfactory news that the Bedeyatchiefs would arrive the next day. In concert with him, Iselected the heglik-tree as the place of meeting, whichwas to be held one hour after sunrise and in which he wasto act as the intermediary between myself and the Bedeyat.I then ordered our tents to be moved to within less thanhalf a mile of the tree, and early the next morning I hadthe troops drawn up in line ready to receive the Bedeyatchiefs, whose approach Saleh now announced. Standingwith my officers and sanjak, Omar Wad Darho, about onehundred yards in front of the line, with our servants holdingthe horses, we prepared to receive our distinguished visi-tors, who, guided by Saleh, were now seen advancing, withtheir hands crossed on their chests and heads bowed low.They had brought an interpreter with them, and throughhim we exchanged mutual greeting. I then ordered carpetsto be spread on the ground, and asked them to be seated,
Text Appearing After Image:
THE GOVERNMENT OF DARFUR. 11/ whilst I and my officers sat on small field chairs; and, hav-ing partaken of sugar and water and dates, we began ourpalaver. The four Bedeyat Sheikhs were tall, fine-looking middle-aged men, with good features and dressed in long whiterobes which no doubt our friend Saleh had prepared forthem ; they also wore the usual straight Arab sword. Theirnames were Gar en Nebbi, Bosh, Omar, and Kurukuru;but I am not quite sure that these high-sounding Arabnames were not assumed for the occasion. Their attendants,numbering between sixty and seventy men, dressed in shirtsand skins, stood some way behind, while Saleh Donkusaseated himself close to the Sheikhs and the interpreter.The spokesman, Gar en Nebbi, now addressed the interpre-ter with the words Kursi Sellem, to which the latteranswered Sellem, indicating that he was ready to trans-late ; and he then began : We belong to the Bedeyat tribe,and our fathers and grandfathers have paid tribute to theSultans of Darfu