The governor at once
came on board to receive us.
This officer hall been only recently appointed, and he appeared to be
very energetic and desirous to assist me in the total extinction of the
slave trade. I assured the governor (Jusef Effendi) that I had entirely
suppressed it in my territory, and I had also suppressed the river trade
in 1870; but if the authorities were determined to connive at this
abomination, I had been placed in a disgracefully false position, and
had been simply employed on a fool's errand.
Jusef Effendi assured me that it would be impossible for vessels to pass
Fashoda with slave cargoes now that he represented the government, as
the Khedive had issued the most positive orders within the last six
months against the traffic in slaves; therefore such instructions must
be obeyed.
I did not quite see that obedience to such orders was absolutely
necessary, as the slave trade had been similarly prohibited by
proclamation in the reign of the late Said Pacha, but with no permanent
effect.
There were two fine steamers lying at Fashoda, which had formed a
portion of the fleet of six steamers that I had sent up from Cairo some
years ago to tow my flotilla up the White Nile.
