Blue Lights: Hot Work in the Soudan

by R. M. Ballantyne

  CHAPTER TEN.

  OFF TO THE WARS.

  The troops sent out to Egypt at that time were much wanted to reinforcethe southern frontier and defend it from the attacks of Osman Digna,who, with a large host of the dusky warriors of the Soudan, was givingthe defenders much trouble, and keeping them incessantly on the _quivive_.

  Miles Milton had no time while in Alexandria for anything but duty. Hesaw Marion only once again before leaving, but did not find anopportunity to converse with her alone. To do him justice, he had notthe most distant intention of declaring the state of his feelings, evenif the opportunity had been given. He merely desired to be in hercompany for a little on any terms whatever!

  On that occasion, however, he contrived to scorch his heart with adouble dose of jealousy, for he found two young men visiting theclergyman, each of whom seemed to be a friend of the family. One was aspendthrift named Rentworth--a young traveller of that loose, easy-goingtype which is occasionally met with in foreign parts, squandering themoney of a rich father. He was a decidedly handsome young fellow, butwith the stamp of dissipation already on his countenance. The other wasa telegraph engineer, with honesty and good-nature in every line of hisplain countenance.

  Both of these youths paid marked attention to Marion--at least Milesthought so--and he hated them both accordingly; all the more that he_felt_ their eyes to be fixed upon him while he was bidding her"farewell." He did not say "Good-bye." That was too commonplace--inthe circumstances almost childish.

  There was one gleam of comfort in the fact, however, that Marion echoedthe word, and that he thought--indeed he was sure--her hand trembledslightly as she returned, or rather received, his squeeze. Miles wasvery stern of countenance and remarkably upright in figure while theseadieux were being said--for the glare of his rivals, he thought, wasupon him.

  How the poor fellow got through the preparations and packing and paradesthat were necessary when the order came abruptly for the regiment tostart for Suez we cannot tell. He went about everything mechanically,or like a man in a dream. And it was not till they had fairly startedin the railway train that he became alive to the serious fact that hewas actually off to the wars!

  The accommodation for passengers in that train was not good. Distinctlybad, indeed, would be the proper term to apply to the kind ofcattle-truck, in which Miles found himself with a detachment of thegallant 310th Infantry; and soon the blinding dust of Egypt reminded ouryoung soldier that the real battle of life had fairly begun.

  "You'll get over it in time, my poor fellow," said his friend Armstrong,who sat beside him.

  "You need the same consolation yourself, friend Willie," retorted Miles,wiping the dust out of the corners of his eyes.

  "I didn't mean _that_," returned his friend. "_You_ know what I mean!But cheer up; absence makes the heart grow fonder--at the same time itmakes a fellow fit for duty. I have gone through it myself, and knowall about it."

  Miles flushed and felt inclined at first to resent this allusion to thestate of his affections, but he was fortunately saved from taking anynotice of it by a sudden burst of laughter among the men at a remarkfrom Corporal Flynn, who, although this was his first visit to Egypt,had undertaken to point out to his comrades the various localities whichhe chose to assume were more or less connected with Scripture history!

  The first part of the journey was not particularly interesting, and whatwith the fine sand and the great heat, the men began to experience thediscomforts of an Eastern climate, and to make frequent application totheir water-bottles. It would have been well if they had contentedthemselves with water, and with the cold tea which some of them had beenprovident enough to save up at breakfast; but when they reached thefirst station where there was a five minutes' halt, some of them managedto smuggle strong drink into the train. One immediate result was thatthe men became more noisy.

  "Come, give us a song, Gaspard," cried several voices, apparentlyinspired at the same moment with the same idea and desire.

  "Wan wid a rousin' chorus, boy," cried Flynn.

  Gaspard complied, being ever ready to oblige, but whether it was theheat, or the dust, or the "rousin'" chorus, or the drink, the song was apartial failure. Perhaps it was the excess of _tremulo_ induced by themotion of the train! At all events it fell flat, and, when finished, ahilarious loud-voiced man named Simkin, or Rattling Bill, struck up"Rule Britannia," which more than made amends for the other, and wassung with intense vigour till the next station was reached.

  Here more drink was smuggled on board the train, and, as a naturalconsequence, men became troublesome. A morose man named Sutherland, whowas apt to grow argumentative and quarrelsome in his cups, made anassertion in reference to something terrestrial, which had no particularinterest for any mortal man. Simkin contradicted it. Sutherlandrepeated it. Simkin knocked Sutherland's helmet overboard. Sutherlandreturned the compliment in kind, and their comrades had to quell anintestine war, while the lost head-pieces were left on the arid plain,where they were last seen surrounded by wonder-stricken and long-leggednatives of the Flamingo tribe.

  This loss was a serious one, for exposure of the head to the sun in sucha climate is exceedingly dangerous, and the old hands had greatdifficulty in impressing the fact on Rattling Bill and Sutherland, who,with the obstinacy of "greenhorns," made light of the danger, andexpressed disbelief in sunstroke.

  Of course considerable interest was manifested when the station ofTel-el-Kebir was reached.

  "It's two mile from this, I've bin towld," said Flynn, "where the greatbattle was fowt."

  "How d'ee know that, Flynn?" asked one.

  "How do I know anything I'm towld but by belaivin' it?" returned thecorporal.

  "It's my opeenion," said the big Scotsman Macleod, "that if there hadbeen ony better troops than Egeeptians to fecht wi', oor men an' my LordWolseley wadna hae fund it sic an easy job."

  "But it is said that the Egyptians were brave enough, and fought anddied like men till they were fairly overpowered," said Moses Pyne, who,being young and ardent, besides just, felt bound to stand up for deadfoes.

  "I'm no objeckin' to their bravery," returned the Scot. "They did thebest they could; but what was to be expeckit o' a wheen men that wasdragged to the field against their wull, an' made to fecht afore theyweel kent hoo to use their airms?"

  "Anyhow they gave us a chance to show what British soldiers can do,"said Rattling Bill.

  "An' sure there's plenty more where they came from to give us anotherchance," said Flynn.

  "That's true, boys. Three cheers for the heroes of Tel-el-Kebir, deadand livin'!" cried Armstrong, setting the example.

  The response was prompt and hearty, and for a few moments a forest ofwhite helmets waved in the air.

  The enthusiasm was not allowed to cool, for the next station wasKassassin, where the Life Guards and our cavalry made their midnightcharges; and where there occurred, perhaps, one of the longest day'sfighting in the war of 1882. Here, also, they saw the graves of thepoor fellows who fell at that time, but the sight did not depress themen much. The somewhat lugubrious Sutherland alone seemed to take aserious view of such matters.

  "It's a' vera weel for licht-hearted lads like you to laugh an' cheer,"he said, "but there's naething mair certain than that some o' you that'slaughin' an' cheerin' yenoo, an' boastin' o' lickin' the Soudan neegers,'ll fill sandy graves afore lang."

  "You don't know that, Scotty. Pr'a'ps we'll _all_ escape and return toold England together," said one of his comrades.

  "Arrah! if I _did_ git into wan o' the sandy graves ye spake of,"remarked Flynn, "I do belaive I'd rise out of it just for the pleasureo' contradictin' you, Sutherland."

  "H'm! nae doot. Contradictiousness whiles maks fowk lively that wad bedull an' deed eneuch withoot it. But did onybody iver hear o' areg'ment gaun' oot to the wars an' comin' back jist as it went? That'sthe question--"

  "As Hamlet's ghost said when he was takin' a night-walk to coolhis-self," interposed Sim
kin.

  "It wasna his ghost; it was his faither's ghost," cried Sutherland; "an'I'm no' sure that--"

  "Howld yer tongues, both o' ye!" cried Flynn; "sure the loss o' yerhelmets is beginning to tell on yer heads already. What can the line beI see in the distance over there? I do belaive it's another o' thimbroad rivers that seem to cut up this land all into stripes."

  "Why, it's the canal, man," cried Moses Pyne, who was more or lessenthusiastic about all the sights and scenes they were passing. "Don'tye see the ships?"

  "Sure enough, you're right, Moses, as ye ginerally are whin you're notwrong. There's some ships comin' wan way, an' some goin' the other.Och! but he _is_ a great jainius that Frenchman as tied the two saystogither--Lips--Lisps--what is it they calls him? I've clane forgot."

  "Lesseps," said Miles, as he gazed with unusual interest on thiswonderful highway of nations.

  The troops reached Suez after a ten hours' journey, the distance beingabout 230 miles. Our hero made the acquaintance here of a private ofmarines named Stevenson, with whom he afterwards served in the Soudan,and with whom he became very friendly, not only because their spiritswere sympathetic, but because, having been brought up in the same partof England, they had similar memories and associations in regard to"home." Only those who have wandered long and far from their nativeland can understand the attractive influence that arises between men whomeet abroad, and find that they can chat about the same places andpersons in the "old country."

  It was Saturday when the troops arrived at Suez, and the heavy dew thatfell rendered the night bitterly cold, and felt to be so all the morebecause of the intense heat of the day. Sunday began with "rousing out"at six, breakfast at seven, parade at eight, and "divine service"thereafter. As there was no clergyman at the place at the time, theduty was performed by one of the officers. Doubtless among the officersthere are men who not only can "read prayers" well, but who have thespirit of prayer in them. That such, however, is not always the casemay be gathered from the remark of one of the men upon this occasion.

  "W'y, you know, Tom," said this rather severe critic to his comradeconfidentially, "there's one advantage in fast readin', that it gets thebusiness soon over, which is some sort o' comfort to fellows that hasgot to attend whether they like it or not, hot or cold, fresh or tired,unless dooty prevents. But the hofficer that did dooty to-day seemed tome to 'ave made a wager to read the prayers against time, an' that cando no good at all to any one, you know. Far better, in my opinion, to'ave no service at all. No wonder men won't listen. Why, it's amockery--that's what it is."

  A walk round Suez with Armstrong and Stevenson till tattoo at 9:30finished the day, and convinced Miles and his friends that the soonerthey bade adieu to that place the better for all of them.

  Their wishes were gratified almost sooner than they wished!