His descendants still live | | |there and keep up the school, but | | |they now have hankerings after | | |temporal power. | | | | | |The Sheikh El Obeid family and | | |followers were early and fanatical | | |adherents of the Mahdi, and it was | | |in attempting to surprise them | | |that Mohammed Ali Pasha and his | | |forces were cut to pieces in 1884. | | | | | |There are two wells about 112 feet | | |deep, one inside, and the other | | |200 yards W. of the S.W. corner of | | |village. | | | | | |The inhabitants belong to various | | |tribes; many have land on the Blue | | |Nile, and some cultivate land to | | |the E. | | | | | |The road starts slightly N. of E., | | |and generally traverses a thin | | |forest of thorny trees, not thick | | |enough really to impede troops, | | |but necessitating a little dodging | | |here and there. At 4¼ miles it _Wad Badrub_ | 4¼ | 31¼ |passes Wad Badrub, a well, said to (Wad Agid) | | |be 140 feet deep, belonging to Um | | |Dibban. About 200 yards further | | |on, and again after 4 more miles, | | |dry tanks were passed. | | | | | |The track maintains a general | | |direction of a little N. of E., | | |but constantly makes considerable | | |changes for short distances. | | | _Wad Hedeibab_| 7¾ | 39 |Well. | | | _Um Sideira_ | 7 | 46 |Well.