This task occupied nearly a month.
The Englishmen had carefully packed everything that belonged to the No.
3 steamer and machinery, and had stowed her in a magazine that was given
in charge of an officer, who gave a receipt for the contents.
Everything was ready by the 25th May for our return homewards. I erected
a monument of red brick coated with pitch over my poor friend
Higginbotham's grave, within my garden, near the spot where the
missionaries were formerly buried.
We started on the 26th, having taken a farewell of my gallant "Forty
Thieves," many of whom showed much emotion at parting. As I walked down
the line of troops when I took official leave, my old soldiers broke the
bounds of discipline by shouting: "May God give you a long life! and may
you meet your family in good health at home!"
I felt a choking sensation in saying good-bye; but we were soon on
board, and the steam was up.
The new steamer, the Khedive, took us in tow, and we travelled rapidly
down the stream towards home in old England.
Although I had written the most important letters to the Khedive and to
his minister in October 1871, I had, to my amazement, NOT RECEIVED ONE
WORD IN REPLY by the post that had arrived from Egypt. I had apparently
been looked upon as a dead man that did not require a letter. It
appeared that my existence was utterly ignored by the Egyptian
government, although I had received my letters in due course from
England.
On arrival at the Bahr Giraffe, we found that the canals which I had
formerly cut were much improved by the force of the stream. Although
these passages were narrow, they had become deep, and we progressed with
comparatively little trouble.
On 7th June, three sails were reported ahead on the horizon. We pushed
forward with some curiosity, but unfortunately a sudd of vegetable rafts
had closed the passage for a short distance, which required about an
hour to clean; this delayed the chase.
That evening, as we had stopped for the night at a spot known as the
"Three Dubbas," we heard a woman's voice from the high grass addressing
us in an imploring tone. I immediately sent a boat to make inquiries, as
one of our native girls understood the language.
It appeared that the woman had the small-pox, and she had been therefore
thrown into the high grass, and abandoned by the vakeel of the three
vessels that we had observed in the distance. She described these
vessels as being crowded with slaves.
I gave the unfortunate creature a supply of six days' food, together
with a cooking-pot and some firewood, but I dared not introduce so
horrible a disease as the small-pox among our party.
