VESSELS RETURN TO KHARTOUM.
ON 6th November, 1871, Lieutenant Baker returned from Gondokoro with
four noggurs, and the entire detachment of Lieutenant-Colonel Achmet.
The news was as follows:-
After the departure of Major Abdullah, the natives had attacked the camp
of Colonel Achmet, and had wounded him in the back with a barbed arrow,
which had to be cut out. Another arrow had passed through the heart of
his servant, killing him on the spot. Several soldiers had been wounded,
but not seriously. The corn had been delivered from his station to the
magazines at Gondokoro.
On 3rd November, thirty vessels had left Gondokoro for Khartoum, taking
about 1,100 people, including children, women, sailors, soldiers, and
invalids.
In spite of my positive orders, that none but the really sick should be
sent to Khartoum, Raouf Bey had in my absence sent away great numbers of
troops who were in sound health, thus reducing the entire force of the
expedition to 502 officers and men, including buglers, drummers, clerks,
&c., exclusive of fifty-two sailors.
Thus an expedition that should have comprised 1,645 men was reduced to
so insignificant a force, that it appeared impossible to proceed into
the interior. The Baris were at war with us; the slave-hunters'
companies were treacherous; and yet I was to suppress the slave trade,
and annex the equatorial districts with less than one-third of the force
required.
