A PATROL ON THE ATBARA. 
43 
physique with a good-humoured black face, he was as plucky and use¬ 
ful a man on such an expedition as could well be imagined. He had 
been largely employed on intelligence “ sneaking ” patrols and with 
two or three comrades, would ride anywhere in the Dervish country, 
and if he could not obtain information by other means, he would lie 
in wait at dawn over the wells and seize and carry off a prisoner even 
from Gedarif itself. Another very plucky fellow who had done most 
useful scouting work down the Atbara, was little Kurrar, a Hadendowa. 
He got through from the Nile to Kassala, though Mahmoud with 20,000 
men blocked the way on the Atbara. The Medical Department was 
represented by a young Egyptian surgeon and his orderly. 
At Tucruf, owing to want of a commissariat and transport depart¬ 
ment, I distributed the bulk of the water and rations to the different 
companies in proportion to their strength. This ensured the camels 
being looked after and quickened the work of loading up and unload¬ 
ing. Every sheikh was made responsible that the rations, &c., lasted 
the time calculated. 
At 3a.m. on the 13th, we left Tucruf and with the aid of a partially 
obscured moon, struggled through the thick bush country of the Gash. 
The pace was slow, but soon the country got more open, and passing 
Ebret where there used formerly to be a village, we halted at 9 a.m. 
The Soudan summer had pretty well begun and even Arabs cannot 
march during the heat of the day without an immense consumption of 
invaluable water. Starting again at 4 p.m., we marched till 9, biv- 
ouacing in square with camels in the centre and posts each of six men, 
about 200 yards distant all round. This was the bivouac formation I 
invariably practised and the troops soon got to form up in their places 
in the dark without the least loss of time, nl the halt during the 
heat of the day, the troops were more scattered and outposts further 
out so that advantage could be taken of any existing shade. The 
sheikhs took their turn of duty daily to visit outposts and generally 
perform the duties of Field Officer of the day. All track had dis¬ 
appeared after the first march and thereafter we pursued a north west¬ 
erly direction in order to strike the Atbara and thence advance on 
Rera by a route unfrequented by Dervish patrols. The country being 
open, the marching formation was usually open column of companies, 
all the baggage camels being with the rear company. Flanking 
patrols and an advance guard marched from i to ^ mile on the flanks 
and in front, this distance being, of course, very much reduced at 
night. At sunrise, the pious ones fell out in twos and threes to say 
their prayers, but I fear they did not amount to more than ten per 
cent of the whole, probably the most bloodthirsty of the lot. All 
were very cheery, however, and it amused me to hear some of the 
sheikhs chaffing and arguing with each other as to the superior courage 
of their respective tribes, as we journeyed along. 
The ration was 1J lb. of flour daily. With this, each man made his 
two “ barkootas ” as follows :—A large fire was made and stones the 
size of one's fist thrown into it. While they were being heated, the 
flour was made into dough by the addition of a little water. This 
