With Kitchener in the Soudan: A Story of Atbara and Omdurman Page 5

  Chapter 4: An Appointment.

  Soon after ten, next morning, Gregory took up his place near theentrance to Lord Cromer's house. It was just eleven when Mr. Murraycame down.

  "Come in with me," he said. "Lord Cromer will see you. He acknowledgedat once, when I told him your story, that you had a strong claim foremployment. The only point was as to your age. I told him that you werepast sixteen, and a strong, active fellow, and that you had had a goodphysical training."

  They had now entered the house.

  "Don't be nervous, Hilliard; just talk to him as you would to me. Manya good man has lost an appointment, from being nervous and embarrassedwhen he applied for it."

  "You want to go up to the Soudan?" Lord Cromer said. "Mr. Murray hastold me your reasons for wanting to go. Though I fear it is hardlylikely that any new light can be thrown upon the fate of Hicks Pasha,and his officers, I feel that it is a natural desire on your part."

  "It was my mother's last wish, sir, and she took particular pains in mytraining, and education, to fit me for the work."

  "You speak Arabic, and the tongue of the Negro blacks, almost as wellas English?"

  "Yes, sir. Arabic quite as well, and the other nearly as well, Ithink."

  "What sort of post did you hope to get, Mr. Hilliard?"

  "Any post for which I may be thought fit, sir. I do not care at allabout pay. My mother saved sufficient to keep me for two or threeyears. I would rather enlist than not go up at all, though I fear I amtoo young to be accepted; but I am quite ready to turn my hand toanything."

  "If it concerned the Egyptian government, or a civil appointment, Iwould certainly exert my influence in your favour; but this expeditionis in the hands of the military. However, if you will take a seat inthe anteroom, and do not mind waiting there for an hour or two, I willsee what can be done."

  "Thank you very much indeed, sir."

  Mr. Murray, as they went out together, said:

  "I think that you have made a good impression. He told me, before, thatit was a matter for Sir Herbert Kitchener, and that he was expectinghim in a quarter of an hour. Come and tell me the result, when youleave."

  Ten minutes later, a tall man, whom Gregory recognized at once as SirHerbert Kitchener, whose figure was well known in Cairo, passed throughthe room; all who were sitting there rising to their feet, as he didso. He acknowledged the salute mechanically, as if scarcely consciousof it. An hour later a bell was rung, and an attendant went into theroom. He returned directly.

  "Mr. Hilliard," he said.

  Gregory rose, and passed through the door held open. Kitchener wassitting at the table with Lord Cromer. His keen glance seemed, toGregory, to take him in from head to foot, and then to look atsomething far beyond him.

  "This is Mr. Hilliard," Lord Cromer said, "the young gentleman I havespoken of."

  "You want to go up?" the general said shortly, in Arabic.

  "Yes, sir."

  "You do not mind in what capacity you go?"

  "No, sir; I am ready to do anything."

  "To work on the railway, or in the transport?"

  "Yes, sir. Though I would rather not be on the railway, for the railwaycannot get on as fast as the troops; but I would enlist in one of theEnglish regiments, if they would take me."

  "And you speak the language of the Nubian blacks?"

  The question was put in that language.

  "Yes; I do not think I speak it quite as well as Arabic, but I speak itfairly."

  "Do you think that you could stand the fatigue?--no child's play, youknow."

  "I can only say that I hope I can, sir. I have been accustomed to takelong walks, and spend an hour a day in gymnastic exercises, and I havehad lessons in fencing."

  "Can you use a pistol?"

  "Yes, fairly; I have practised a good deal with it."

  "You are most fitted for an interpreter," the general said, speakingthis time in English. "Now the North Staffordshire have come down,there are no British regiments up there, and of course the Britishofficers in the Egyptian army all speak Arabic, to some extent.However, I will send you up to Dongola. Either General Hunter, orColonel Wingate, of the Intelligence Department, may be able to findsome use for you; and when the British troops go up, you can beattached to one of their regiments as their interpreter. You will havetemporary rank of lieutenant, with, of course, the pay of that rank.

  "Captain Ewart came with me, Lord Cromer. I left him in the anteroom.If you will allow me, I will call him in.

  "Captain Ewart," he said, as that officer entered, "Mr. Hilliard herehas just received the temporary rank of lieutenant, in the Egyptianarmy, and is going up to join General Hunter, at Dongola. You arestarting in three days, are you not?

  "I shall be glad if you will take him under your wing, as far as yougo. He speaks the languages, Negro as well as Arabic. You can tell himwhat kit he had better take, and generally mother him.

  "That is all, Mr. Hilliard. Call at my quarters, the day aftertomorrow, for the letters for General Hunter and Colonel Wingate."

  "I thank you most deeply, sir," Gregory began, but the Sirdar gave alittle impatient wave with his hand.

  "Thank you most deeply also, Lord Cromer!" Gregory said with a bow, andthen left the room.

  Captain Ewart remained there for another ten minutes. When he came out,he nodded to Gregory.

  "Will you come with me?" he said. "I am going to the bank. I shall notbe there many minutes, and we can then have a talk together."

  "Thank you, sir! I am going to the bank too. It was Mr. Murray whofirst spoke to Lord Cromer about me."

  "You could not have had a better introduction. Well, you won't havevery long to get ready for the start--that is, if you have not begun toprepare for it. However, there is no rush at present, therefore I haveno doubt you will be able to get your khaki uniforms in time. As forother things, there will be no difficulty about them."

  "You have been up at the front before, sir?"

  "Yes, my work is on the railway. I had a touch of fever, and got leaveto come down and recruit, before the hot weather came in. I dare sayyou think it hot here, sometimes, but this is an ice house incomparison with the desert."

  They talked until they arrived at the bank.

  "You may as well go in first, and see Murray. I suppose you won't beabove two or three minutes. I shall be longer, perhaps a quarter of anhour; so if you wait for me, we will go to Shepherd's, and talk yourbusiness over in some sort of comfort."

  "I am pleased, indeed," Mr. Murray said, when Gregory told him of hisappointment. "It is better than I even hoped. It is bad enough there,in the position of an officer, but it would be infinitely worse in anyother capacity. Do you want to draw any money?"

  "No, sir; I have fifty pounds by me, and that will be enough, I shouldthink, for everything."

  "More than ample. Of course, you have plenty of light underclothing ofall sorts, and a couple of suits of khaki will not cost you anythinglike so much as they would, if you got them at a military tailor's inLondon. However, if you want more, you will be able to draw it."

  "Thank you very much, sir! I will not detain you any longer, now; butwill, if you will allow me, come in to say goodbye before I start.Captain Ewart is waiting to speak to you. He came with me from LordCromer's."

  Captain Ewart then went in, and after settling the business on which hehad come, asked Mr. Murray questions about Gregory, and received asketch of his story.

  "He seems to be a fine young fellow," he said, "well grown and active,not at all what one would expect from a product of Cairo."

  "No, indeed. Of course, you have not seen him to advantage, in thatblack suit, but in his ordinary clothes I should certainly take him, ifI had not seen him before, to be a young lieutenant freshly come out tojoin."

  "Did you know the father?"

  "No, I was not here at that time; but the mother was a lady, everyinch. It is strange that neither of them should have friends inEngland. It may be that she preferred to earn her l
iving here, and bealtogether independent."

  "She had a pension, hadn't she?"

  "A small one, but she really earned her living by teaching. She gavelessons to the ladies in English, French, and music, and had classesfor young boys and girls. I once asked her if she did not intend to goback and settle in England, and she said 'Possibly, some day.'

  "I fancy that there must have been some mystery about the affair--what,I can't say; but at any rate, we may take it that such a woman wouldnot have married a man who was not a gentleman."

  "Certainly the boy looks a well-bred one," Captain Ewart said, "and Iam sure that the Sirdar must have been taken with him. You don't knowany more about his father than you have told me?"

  "Very little. Once, in talking with his wife, she told me that herhusband had been in a commercial house, in Alexandria, for a year; butthe place was burned down at the time of the bombardment. Being thusout of harness, he became an assistant to one of the army contractorsand, when things settled down at Cairo, obtained a berth asinterpreter, with the temporary rank of captain, on Hicks Pasha'sstaff, as he also spoke Arabic fluently. I can tell you no more abouthim than that, as I never saw him; though no doubt he came here withhis wife, when her account was opened.

  "I was interested in her. I looked up the old books, and found that twohundred pounds was paid into her account, before he left. I may saythat she steadily increased that amount, ever since; but a few yearsago she had the sum then standing transferred to the boy's name,telling me frankly, at the time, that she did so to save trouble, incase anything happened to her. I fancy, from what she said, that forthe last year or two she had been going downhill. I had a chat withher, the last time she came in. She told me that she had beenconsumptive, and that it was for the sake of her health they came outhere."

  "That accounts for it, Murray. By the date, they were probably onlymarried a year or so before they came out; and a man who loved a youngwife, and saw no other way of saving her, would throw up any berth athome, in order to give her the benefit of a warm climate. Still, it isa little curious that, if he had only been out here a year or so beforeHicks started, he should have learned Arabic sufficiently well to get apost as interpreter. I have been in the country about three years, andcan get on fairly well with the natives, in matters concerning my ownwork; but I certainly could not act as general interpreter.

  "Well, I am glad to have heard this, for you know the sort of meninterpreters generally are. From the lad's appearance and manner, thereis no shadow of doubt that his mother was a lady. I thought it morethan probable that she had married beneath her, and that her husbandwas of the ordinary interpreter class. Now, from what you have said, Isee that it is probable he came of a much better family. Well, you maybe sure that I shall do what I can for the lad."

  Gregory joined him, as he left the bank.

  "I think, Hilliard, we had best go to the tailor, first. His shop isnot far from here. As you want to get your things in three days, it isas well to have that matter settled, at once."

  The two suits, each consisting of khaki tunic, breeches, and putties,were ordered.

  "You had better have breeches," he said. "It is likely you will have toride, and knickerbockers look baggy."

  This done, they went to Shepherd's Hotel.

  "Sit down in the verandah," Captain Ewart said, "until I get rid of myregimentals. Even a khaki tunic is not an admirable garment, when onewants to be cool and comfortable."

  In a few minutes he came down again, in a light tweed suit; and,seating himself in another lounging chair, two cooling drinks werebrought in; then he said:

  "Now we will talk about your outfit, and what you had best take up. Ofcourse, you have got light underclothing, so you need not bother aboutthat. You want ankle boots--and high ones--to keep out the sand. Youhad better take a couple of pairs of slippers, they are of immensecomfort at the end of the day; also a light cap, to slip on when youare going from one tent to another, after dark. A helmet is a goodthing in many ways, but it is cumbrous; and if there are four or fivemen in a tent, and they all take off their helmets, it is difficult toknow where to stow them away.

  "Most likely you will get a tent at Dongola, but you can't alwaysreckon upon that, and you may find it very useful to have a light tented'abri made. It should have a fly, which is useful in two ways. In thefirst place, it adds to the height and so enlarges the space inside;and in the next place, you can tie it up in the daytime, and allowwhatever air there is to pass through. Then, with a blanket thrown overthe top, you will find it cooler than a regimental tent.

  "Of course, you will want a sword and a revolver, with a case and belt.Get the regulation size, and a hundred rounds of cartridges; you arenot likely ever to use a quarter of that number, but they will come infor practice.

  "Now, as to food. Of course you get beef, biscuit, or bread, and thereis a certain amount of tea, but nothing like enough for a thirstyclimate, especially when--which is sometimes the case--the water is sobad that it is not safe to drink, unless it has been boiled; so you hadbetter take up four or five pounds of tea."

  "I don't take sugar, sir."

  "All the better. There is no better drink than tea, poured out and leftto cool, and drunk without sugar. You might take a dozen tins ofpreserved milk, as many of condensed cocoa and milk, and a couple ofdozen pots of jam. Of course, you could not take all these things on ifyou were likely to move, but you may be at Dongola some time, beforethere is another advance, and you may as well make yourself ascomfortable as you can; and if, as is probable, you cannot take thepots up with you, you can hand them over to those who are left behind.You will have no trouble in getting a fair-sized case taken up, asthere will be water carriage nearly all the way.

  "A good many fellows have aerated waters sent up, but hot soda water isby no means a desirable drink--not to be compared with tea kept inporous jars; so I should not advise you to bother about it. You willwant a water bottle. Get the largest you can find. It is astonishinghow much water a fellow can get down, in a long day's march.

  "Oh! As to your boots, get the uppers as light as you can--the lighterthe better; but you must have strong soles--there are rocks in someplaces, and they cut the soles to pieces, in no time. The sand is badenough. Your foot sinks in it, and it seems to have a sort of suckingaction, and very often takes the sole right off in a very short time.

  "I suppose you smoke?"

  "Cigarettes, sir."

  "I should advise you to get a pipe, in addition, or rather two or threeof them. If they get broken, or lost in the sand, there is no replacingthem; and if you don't take to them, yourself, you will find them themost welcome present you can give, to a man who has lost his.

  "I should advise you to get a lens. You don't want a valuable one, butthe larger the better, and the cheapest that you can buy; it will bequite as good as the best, to use as a burning glass. Matches areprecious things out there and, with a burning glass, you will only haveto draw upon your stock in the evening.

  "Now, do you ride? Because all the white officers with the Egyptiantroops do so."

  "I am sorry to say that I don't, sir. I have ridden donkeys, but anyonecan sit upon a donkey."

  "Yes; that won't help you much. Then I should advise you to use all thetime that you can spare, after ordering your outfit, in riding. Nodoubt you could hire a horse."

  "Yes; there is no difficulty about that."

  "Well, if you will hire one, and come round here at six o'clocktomorrow morning, I will ride out for a couple of hours with you, andgive you your first lesson. I can borrow a horse from one of the staff.If you once get to sit your horse, in a workman-like fashion, and tocarry yourself well, you will soon pick up the rest; and if you go out,morning and evening, for three hours each time, you won't be quiteabroad, when you start to keep up with a column of men on foot.

  "As to a horse, it would be hardly worth your while to bother abouttaking one with you. You will be able to pick one up at Dongola. I hearthat fugitives are constan
tly coming in there, and some of them aresure to be mounted. However, you had better take up a saddle and bridlewith you. You might as well get an Egyptian one; in the first placebecause it is a good deal cheaper, and in the second because ourEnglish saddles are made for bigger horses. You need not mind muchabout the appearance of your animal. Anything will do for riding aboutat Dongola, and learning to keep your seat. In the first fight you havewith Dervish horsemen, there are sure to be some riderless horses, andyou may then get a good one, for a pound or two, from some Tommy whohas captured one."

  "I am sure I am immensely obliged to you, Captain Ewart. That willindeed be an advantage to me."

  On leaving the hotel Gregory at once made all his purchases, so as toget them off his mind; and then arranged for the horse in the morning.Then he went home, and told the old servant the change that had takenplace in his position.

  "And now, what about yourself, what would you like to do?"

  "I am too old to go up with you, and cook for you."

  "Yes, indeed," he laughed; "we shall be doing long marches. But it isnot your age, so much. As an officer, it would be impossible for me tohave a female servant. Besides, you want quiet and rest. I have beenround to the landlord, to tell him that I am going away, and to pay hima month's rent, instead of notice. I should think the best way would befor you to take a large room for yourself, or two rooms not solarge--one of them for you to live in, and the other to storeeverything there is here. I know that you will look after them, andkeep them well. Of course, you will pick out all the things that youcan use in your room. It will be very lonely for you, living all byyourself, but you know numbers of people here; and you might engage agirl to stay with you, for some small wages and her food. Now, you mustthink over what your food and hers will cost, and the rent. Of course,I want you to live comfortably; you have always been a friend ratherthan a servant, and my mother had the greatest trust in you."

  "You are very good, Master Gregory. While you have been away, today, Ihave been thinking over what I should do, when you went away. I have afriend who comes in, once a week, with fruit and vegetables. Last year,you know, I went out with her and stayed a day. She has two boys whowork in the garden, and a girl. She came in today, and I said to her:

  "'My young master is going away to the Soudan. What do you say to mycoming and living with you, when he has gone? I can cook, and do allabout the house, and help a little in the garden; and I have savedenough money to pay for my share of food.'

  "She said, 'I should like that, very well. You could help the boys, inthe field.'

  "So we agreed that, if you were willing, I should go. I thought of thefurniture; but if you do not come back here to live, it would be no useto keep the chairs, and tables, and beds, and things. We can put allMissy's things, and everything you like to keep, into a great box, andI could take them with me; or you could have them placed with somehonest man, who would only charge very little, for storage."

  "Well, I do think that would be a good plan, if you like these people.It would be far better than living by yourself. However, of course Ishall pay for your board, and I shall leave money with you; so that, ifyou are not comfortable there, you can do as I said, take a room here.

  "I think you are right about the furniture. How would you sell it?"

  "There are plenty of Greek shops. They would buy it all. They would notgive as much as you gave for it. Most of them are great rascals."

  "We cannot help that," he said. "I should have to sell them when I comeback and, at any rate, we save the rent for housing them. They are notworth much. You may take anything you like, a comfortable chair and abed, some cooking things, and so on, and sell the rest for anything youcan get, after I have gone. I will pack my dear mother's things, thisevening."

  For the next two days, Gregory almost lived on horseback; arranging,with the man from whom he hired the animals, that he should change themthree times a day. He laid aside his black clothes, and took to a whiteflannel suit, with a black ribbon round his straw hat; as deep mourningwould be terribly hot, and altogether unsuited for riding.

  "You will do, lad," Captain Ewart said to him, after giving him hisfirst lesson. "Your fencing has done much for you, and has given you aneasy poise of body and head. Always remember that it is upon balancingthe body that you should depend for your seat; although, of course, thegrip of the knees does a good deal. Also remember, always, to keep yourfeet straight; nothing is so awkward as turned-out toes. Besides, inthat position, if the horse starts you are very likely to dig yourspurs into him.

  "Hold the reins firmly, but don't pull at his head. Give him enoughscope to toss his head if he wants to, but be in readiness to tightenthe reins in an instant, if necessary."

  Each day, Gregory returned home so stiff, and tired, that he couldscarcely crawl along. Still, he felt that he had made a good deal ofprogress; and that, when he got up to Dongola, he would be able tomount and ride out without exciting derision. On the morning of the dayon which he was to start, he went to say goodbye to Mr. Murray.

  "Have you everything ready, Hilliard?" the banker asked.

  "Yes, sir. The uniform and the tent are both ready. I have a cork bed,and waterproof sheet to lay under it; and, I think, everything that Ican possibly require. I am to meet Captain Ewart at the railway, thisafternoon at five o'clock. The train starts at half past.

  "I will draw another twenty-five pounds, sir. I have not spent morethan half what I had, but I must leave some money with our old servant.I shall have to buy a horse, too, when I get up to Dongola, and I mayhave other expenses, that I cannot foresee."

  "I think that is a wise plan," the banker said. "It is always well tohave money with you, for no one can say what may happen. Your horse mayget shot or founder, and you may have to buy another. Well, I wish youevery luck, lad, and a safe return."

  "Thank you very much, Mr. Murray! All this good fortune has come to me,entirely through your kindness. I cannot say how grateful I feel toyou."