"Surely I will go with my lord," the native said. "No one has ever been so good to me as he has. If my lord is killed I am ready to die with him. He may count on me to do anything that he requires, even to go with him into the Dervish camp. I might go as a slave, my lord."
"That would not do, Zaki. I do not wish to travel as a person who could ride attended by a slave. People might say, who is this man I where does he come from ? how is it that no one knows a man who rides with a slave? My great object will be to enter the camp quietly as one who has but left half an hour before. When I have once entered it, and they ask whence I came, I must tell them some likely story that I have made up: as, for example, that I have come from El Obeid, and that I am an officer of the governor there; that, finding he could not get away himself, he yielded to my request that I might come and help to drive the infidels into the sea."
Zaki nodded. "That would be a good tale, my lord, for men who have escaped from El Obeid and have come here have said that the Khalifa's troops there have not been called to join him at Omdurman, for it is necessary to keep a strong force there, as many of the tribes of the province would rise in rebellion if they had the chance; therefore you would not be likely to meet anyone from El Obeid in Mahmud's camp."
" How is it, Zaki, that when so many in the Soudan have suffered at the hands of the Dervishes, they not only remain quiet, but supply the largest part of the Khalifa's army?"
"Because, my lord, none of them can trust the others. It is madness for one tribe to rise as the Jaalin did at Metemmeh; the Dervishes wiped them out from the face of the earth. Many follow him because they see that Allah has always given victory to the Mahdists; therefore the Mahdi must be his prophet. Others join his army because their villages have been destroyed and their fields wasted, and they see no other way of saving themselves from starvation. There are many who fight because they are fond of fighting. You see how gladly they take service with you and fight against their own countrymen, although you are Christians. Suppose you were to conquer the Khalifa to-morrow, half his army would enlist in your service if you would take them. A man who would be contented to till his fields, if he could do so in peace and quiet, fears that he may see his produce eaten by others and his house set on flames, and would rather leave his home and fight—he cares not against whom. The Mahdist army are badly fed and badly paid; they can scarce keep life together. But in the Egyptian army the men are well taken care of; they have their rations and their pay. They say that if they are wounded, or lose a limb and are no more able to fight, they receive a pension. Is it wonderful that they should come to you and be faithful?"
" Well, Zaki, we won't talk any longer now. It is agreed, then, that if I go on this expedition you will accompany me?"
"Certainly, master; wherever you go I am ready to go. Whatever happens to you will, I hope, happen to me."
On the following afternoon Gregory was sent for. " I have given the matter a good deal of thought, Mr. Hilliard," the General said, "and have decided to accept your offer. I suppose that you have been thinking the matter over. Do you decide to go on foot or mounted?"
"On horseback, sir. My boy is perfectly willing to go with me. He knows the way and the position of the wells on the road. My plan is that when we get near Metemmeh he shall remain with the horses somewhere near the river, and I shall enter the camp on foot. I am less likely to be noticed that way. If questioned, my story will be that my father was at El Obeid, and that the governor there is by the Khalifa's orders holding his force in hand to put down any outbreaks there may be in the province, and that wishing to fight against the infidel I have come on my own account. If I am asked why I had not come on horseback, I shall say that I had ridden to within the last two or three miles, and that the horse had then died. But I do not expect to be questioned at all, as one man on foot is as nothing in an army of twenty or thirty thousand gathered from all over the Soudan."
" You quite understand, Mr. Hilliard, that you are taking your life in your hands, and that there is no possibility whatever of our doing anything for you if you get into trouble?"
" Quite, sir. If I am detected I shall probably be killed at once. I do not think that there is more risk in it than in going into battle. As I have told you, I have, so far as I know, no relatives in the world, and there will be no one to grieve if I never come back again. As to the clothes, I can easily buy them from one of the natives here. Many of them are dressed in the garments of the Dervishes who were killed when we came up here, except, of course, that the patches were taken off. I will get my man to buy a suit for himself and one for me; it would be better than having new clothes made, for even if these were dirtied they would not look old. When he has bought the clothes he can give them a good washing, and then get a piece of stuff to sew on as patches.
"I am afraid, sir, that there will be little chance of my being able to obtain any absolute news of Mahmud's intentions, but only to glean general opinion in the camp. It is not likely that the news of any intended departure would be kept a secret up till the last moment among the Dervishes as it would be here,"
"Quite so," the General agreed. "We may take it as certain that the matter would be one of common talk. Of course Mahmud and his principal advisers might change their minds at any moment; still, I think that were it intended to make a move against us or to Berber, it would be generally known. I may tell you that we do not intend to cross the Bayuda desert. We shall go up the river, but this is a secret that will be kept till the last moment. And before we start Ave shall do all in our power to spread a belief that we are going to advance to Metemmeh. We know that they are well informed by their spies here of our movements. We shall send a strong force to make a reconnaissance as far as Gakdul. This will appear to be a preliminary step to our advance, and should keep Mahmud inactive till too late. He will not dare advance to Berber, because he will be afraid of our cutting him off from Omdurman.
"You are satisfied with your horse? It is advisable that you should have a good one, and yet not so good as to attract attention."
"Yes; I could not want a better horse, General. He is not handsome, but I have ridden him a great deal, and he is certainly fast; and being desert bred I have no doubt has plenty of endurance. I shall of course get one for my boy."
" There are plenty in the transport yard. They have been bought up from fugitives who have come in here. I will write you an order to select any one you choose, and if you see one you think better than your own, you can take it also, and hand yours over to the transport to keep until you return. You should take a Martini-Henri with you. I will give you an order for one on one of the native regiments. They are, as you know, armed with them, and have, of course, a few cases of spare rifles. A good many have fallen into the hands of the Dervishes at one time or another, so that your carrying such a weapon will not excite any remark. It would not do to take a revolver, but no doubt you will be able to buy pistols that have been brought down by the fugitives. You will certainly be able to get them at some of those Greek shops; they buy up all that kind of thing. Of course you will carry one of the Dervish long knives. Is there anything else that you can think of?" "Nothing, sir."
"When will you be ready, do you suppose?" " By the day after to-morrow, sir. I shall start after dark, so that no one will notice my going. With your permission I will come round before I set off, so that you can see whether the disguise is good enough to pass."
CHAPTER VII
TO METEMMEH
ZAKI at once set to work to collect the articles needed for the journey, and Gregory obtained from the transport another horse and two native saddles. He was well satisfied with his own animal; and even had he found in the transport yard a better horse he would still have preferred his own, as they were accustomed to each other. He bought pistols for himself and Zaki, and a matchlock for the latter. Everything was ready by the time Gregory went to the mess to lunch, on the day fixed for his departure. Nothing whatever had been said as to his leaving, as it was possible that some of the native servants who waited upon them might have picked up sufficient English to gather that something important was about to take place. When, however, the meal was over and he said carelessly, "I shall not be at mess this evening," he saw by the expression of the officers' faces that they all were aware of the reason for his absence. One after another they either shook hands with him or gave him a quiet pat on the shoulder, with the words " Take care of yourself, lad," or " A safe journey and a speedy return," or some other kind wish.