The Egyptian campaigns, 1882 to 1885Royle, Charles
History
The Egyptian campaigns, 1882 to 1885
Royle, Charles
Egypt -- History -- British occupation, 1882-1936; Sudan -- History
The same day a party of the 42nd Regiment was sent out to bury the
Europeans who fell in Baker's defeat. All the bodies being stripped of
every particle of clothes, it was most difficult to identify them; but
twenty-five were distinguished, and of these the following could be
identified with certainty, viz., Morice Bey, Dr. Leslie, Captain
Forrestier-Walker, Lieutenants Watkins, Carroll, Smith, and Morisi.
Of the Egyptians who fell, only Abdul Rassak Bey, Chief of the Staff,
could be recognized. Morice Bey and Dr. Leslie were both lying side by
side inside the left front of the square with their faces towards the
front. Walker and Watkins were also close together in the opposite
corner.
The troops bivouacked in the plain in front of Tokar, supplies being
brought forward from Fort Baker.
On the 2nd March the cavalry rode out to the encampment of the enemy at
a place called Dubba, about three miles distant: here was found inside a
zeriba a pile of 1,500 Remingtons, 200 boxes of ammunition, one
7-pounder gun, and one Gatling. Outside was a hut, in which was stored
the loot taken at Baker's defeat, a miscellaneous assortment, gun-cases,
portmanteaus, writing-cases, surgical instruments, &c. A party of
Hussars broke up the whole of the rifles, and the other things of value
were loaded on mules.
The day following the arrival of the troops many of the inhabitants who
had fled when the rebels were fighting at El-Teb, or had gone off in
company with them, returned with their families and property. A wounded
Egyptian artilleryman said that he and seven others had been dragged
with ropes from Tokar to El-Teb to work the guns. All the others were
killed, and he, on trying to escape, was shot in the back by the
Soudanese, but managed to crawl to Tokar during the night. He stated
that a great number of the enemy escaped from the fight in a wounded
condition. According to this man and others, the rebel leaders alleged
that they were deceived by Osman Digna, who told them it was untrue that
the English were coming, and assured them that they would only have to
meet and defeat another Egyptian army.
The troops then returned to Trinkitat, accompanied by 700 of the
survivors from Tokar, and commenced to re-embark for Souakim on March
5th.
CHAPTER XXXV.
GRAHAM'S VICTORY AT TAMAAI.
By the 9th of March the change of base from Trinkitat to Souakim had
been completed.
On the same day the Black Watch marched out and occupied a zeriba
constructed by Baker some weeks before, and distant about eight miles on
the road from Souakim to Sinkat.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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