. HOTORIOTIORIOIRIRAIORRIIIRIRORE DEFEAT OF THE DERVISHES--- THE SOUDAN RECONQUERED, “Chinese” Grordon Avenged.’ x XK HCRAKK FACAAICACICIBICKIICICICICICICICIBICICIIOK OMPLETE and overwhelming is the defeat of the Dervishes. January 27, 1885— England was humiliated in the Soudan by the rout of her troops, the assassination of Gordon ‘and the fall of Khar- toum, the ‘capital of the Equatorial Provinces of Egypt and the centre of British influence in Cen- tral Africa. September 3, 1898 — England and Gordon were avenged by the utter rout of the Mahdists, by the fall of Omdurman, the Mahdist capi- tal, just across the Nile from the ruins of Khartoum, and by the complete re-establishment of British power in the rich Soudan- ese provinces. With the overthrow of the Mahdist empire the last strong- hold of the slave trade in the world has been destroyed. The man who has routed the Der- vishes, Major-General Sir Horatio Herbert Kitchener, G. B. C. M. G., has rendered the greatest service to MAJOR-GENERAL HERBERT KITCHENER. his country, both in a military and civil capacity. He was born in Ire- land, of good old Irish fighting stock, in 1851 and obtained a lieutenant’s commission when twenty years of age. He became captain in 1883, major in the following year, lieutenant-colonel in 1885 and colonel in 1888. After the Soudan campaign he was selected to recognize the Egyptian army and appointed Birdar of the forces. and striking testimony to his ability has been given by the efficiency of the troops under his command dur- ing the expedition which has culmin- ated in the recapture of the strong- hold of the fanatics. The fall of Khartoum means that the power of the Khalifa Abdullah is practically overthrown and that Kar- dofan and the Soudan are restored to the rule of Egypt, and that a point of great strategic importance and of vast commercial possibilities has been gained. Seated at the confluence of the Blue Nile and White Nile, the city is bound to be a great emporium of trade. [It is shaped like the head of an elephant, from which it derives its name. In the old days it was very beautiful, with white walls and domes and minarets gleaming through green palm groves. Jut the Khalifa’s wild : Then, becoming bolder, the pretender of a sudden openly called himself the Mahdi, a name derived from a word in the opening chapter of the Koran. He called himself Mahdi Khalifat er Rasul, (‘‘the successor, of the Prophet’), while his adherents called him Sayid (‘‘The Master”); Savid na el Mahdi (‘Our Master, the Leader”). This troublesome and extraordinary person, with no drill or military seci- ence, no weapons to speak of, but plenty of ferocious followers, principal- ly of the Baggara race, marched through the towns and villages of Kordofan, and with 30,000 men beseiged El parts broken and indefensible. The vast mass of assailing Dervishes made thereby their rush, in two bands, just before the British relieving force crme in sight of the white walls and green palm groves of the city. Gor- don died at his hopeless post. This undoubted triumph intoxicated his followers with faith, but demoral- ized the Mahdi. He took to unbridled luxury, and died of its consequences on July 22, 1885. The desert ascetic, whose bed had been a mat of straw, expired upon Persian carpets in all the splendor and state of a great East- ern prince, having founded in his brief- career an empire built on the basis of slavery and reckless blood- shed. Before death he had himself nominated Abdullah as his successor, who thus inherited a dominion stretching from the Bahr-el-Ghaxal to Egypt, and from Darfur to the Red Sea. The new tyrant began with very great ideas. He proclaimed that he would conquer all Egypt, as well as Abyssinia. Putting all laws on one side, he wade himself absolute master over life and death in the Soudan. E07 4 = i \ = ve THE KHALIFA ABDULLAH ON CAMELBACK AT THE HEAD OF HIS DERVISHES- Obeid and took the town after one re- pulse, cruelly murdering its brave de- fenders. That conquest increased the name and fame of the Mahdi, who settled down like a king at El Obeid, while preparing for a farther advance to Khartoum. By this time he had in- flamed with his preaching and success the whole of Kordofan and of Sennar. A DERVISH CHIEF. except that corner where the city of Khartoum sits upon the junction of the White and Blue Nile. Before he could master this central position he had to confront ihe expe- dition under Hicks Pacha, sent by the Egyptian Government to Rahad. Everybody knows the miserable issue. The Mahdi cut that force to pieces, so that hardly 2 man escaped, and by this OMDURMAN, THE MAHDIST CAPITAL, Ve followers have probably made the city desolate. The city has had an eventful history since 1882. Raouf Pacha was govern- ing the Isle of Meroe for the Khedive in that year. News was beginning to arrive of a certain Dervish wandering in the Soudan; who was drawing all the natives to him,and especially those Arabs wlo lived by the slave trade, which Gessi Paclhia had been extirpa- ting. This Dervish, Mohammed Ahmad by name, could turn, it is said, all government bullets into water, and had, in truth, once and again defeated Egyptian troops sent to arrest him. CAPTURED BY THE BRITISH FORCES. victory gained almost the entire Sou- dan, and opened the way to the con- quest of Khartoum. Then the victorious and pious slave dealer set. out for Khartoum, where the hapeless people, deceived by the hope of English help, had lingered to welcome Gordon. No notice was taken of that hero’s proclamations to the Sondanese. His communicaticns were cut with the north, and very soon a horde numbering 200,000 swarmed at the heels of the Mahdi into Omdurman and the outskirts of Khartoum. This was in October, 1884. > The low Nile left a part of the ram- Some idea of the inner life of the Mahdi and the Kahlifa is found in the remarkable experience of an Aus- trian officer named Slatin, who, while acting as governor of a province in the Soudan under Gordon, was captured by the Mahdi and held a prisoner many years. When Khar- toum was taken Slatin was living in a hut at Omdurman, heavily chained and exposed daily to the insults of the mob. After the taking of the city some Dervishes came to him with something rolled in a cloth, and, com- manding him to stand forth, they un- rolled suddenly their bundle and showed him the gory head of Gordon. Afterward he learned how Gordon had died. When Khartoum fell and the Mahdists were swarming through the city, Gordon came down the stairway of his house and demanded the leader of the invaders. He was speared to death where he stood, and his head cut off to show to the Mahdi. The return of “The Man Who Was” in Kipling’s story was no more dram- atic than the actual return to the land of white men of Rudolph Slatin, or Slatin Pasha, as he is known. Six- teen years before the young and dash- SLATIN PASHA. ing Austrian officer had gone out-into the wilds of Africa as governor of the great province of Darfur. For twelve years he had been a slave in the hands of the Mahdists, suffering every in- dignity that the ingenuity of the Mahdi and his successor, the Khalifa, could invent. Une day s man dis- guised as an Arab trader, passed him in the street and whispered to him that he had been sent by Major Win- gute, Direator of Military Intelligence, Egyptian Army, and Baron Heidler, Austrian Ambassador in Cairo, to help him to escape. They managed to have several interviews, and finally vue night, after the Khalifa had gone to bed and the city was asleep, Slatin mounted a donkey and rode to where the faithful Arab, Hussein, had camels in waiting. en a long and hazard- ous flight began, which, after much suffering and many perils, ended in the officers’ mess at Assuan, de "AUTUMNAL FABRICS WAR COLORS ARE WORKS OF ART SQ o @ Pe IN THE GOWNS. 2 HERR ATE fall and winter dress materials of 1898 are works of art, and their variety is great. Many women hesitate to se- lect fabries for their winter i gowns so early in the season, believing that new designs and materials will be brought out advances. Those who in, however, have the wider choice. In colored goods, pop- lin and crepon vie with each other for first place. Many people understand by poplin a smooth one-tonel ma- terial worn by their grandmothers, and by crepon almost any soft stuff with a raised figure. Such will open their eyes in astonishment when they come to view the brilliant goods now displayed. Among poplins there are exquisite shadow plaids on a poplin ground, broken plaids, two-toned pop- lin velours and plain two-toned pop- lins in all the new shades and stand- ard colorings. One thinks that noth- ing in the way of dress goods could be prettier until the plain poplins in the new shades of red and blue and purple, with bayadere ° stripes of black plush, come into sight. Some of these have a black stripe, between the plush stripes, in serpentine braid effect. In fact there is more chance than ever for woman to be beautiful, since now there are war colors in her gowns. She wears marine blue, mili- 2 as the season plunge right Very satisfactory results are obtained by combinations in a waist of this kind, which may either match or contrast with the waist. Turquoise blue with black in silk or velvet, oleander pink silk with olive broadcloth and dark red satin with soft grey green poplin are new and artistic combinations in color- ing that unite with black or cream guipure now so fashionable, To make this waist for a lady of medium size will require two yards of material forty-four inches wide. Ladies’ New Three Piece Skirt. As broadeloth and other fabrics of wide width is the vogue for antumn THE FAVORITE SKIRT. and winter wear, the three piece skirt as here presented is the favorite model. It combines grace of form and style in outline with economy of material —— LADIES’ ADMIRAL BASQUE. tary gray and cavalry yellow. Artil- lery red is also seen in the trimmings of her costumes and wraps and there is a martial air about them. A Charming Design. A charming combination is here rep- resented in steel grey and white broad- cloth decorated, with black guipure lace and narrow black satin ribbon ‘‘frizzed out.” The yoke and stand- ing collar of white cloth is overlaid with black guipure lace applique to match decorating the fronts, back and sleeves. The fashionable fronts are cut low and crossed in ‘‘Indor” style, just enough fulness being collected by gathers at the waist to poueh becom- ingly over the belt, Glove-fitted lin- © AN “‘INDOR"” waIsT. ings that close in centre front support the deep yoke that is included in the right shoulder arm, and closes with the standing collar over on the left shoulder. The over fronts lap to the left and close invisibly with the shaped belt. Over the seamless back that is smooth at the top a rounded yoke fac- ing is applied, the fulness at the lower edge being laid in overlapping plaits at the centre. ? A novel feature is the smooth round bertha of white cloth that outlines the yoke edge with narrow black ‘‘frizzed’”’ ribbon and the shaped belt tliat lengthens the waist line. The stylish sleeves are shaped with two seams, the upper portions being adjusted by gathers and tacking over the fitted lining to form a puff at the top. At the wrists a narrow pointed cuff is joined that flares downward over the hand. and can be decorated in various ways, cross bauds as here shown being best for tall and lengthwise for short figures. The narrow front gore is set be- tween two wide circular portions that meet in a seam at centre back. The fulness at the top is laid in two overlapping plaitsat each side of centre but gathers can be employed if so pre- ferred. Swall darts fit the top smoothly over the hips, the graceful flare to the foot resulting from the shaping that accords with the newest mode. Cloth, serge, camel’s hair, crepon, cheviot, mohair, etamine and all wide novelty fabrics will give satisfaction when developed by tue mode; braid, ribbon or bias bands of the material providing suitable decoration. A skirt of black nuns veiling, henri- etta cashmere or drap-d-ete trimmed with bands of crepe or duapp ribbon silk in this style will be very appro- priate for mourning. The skirt measares four yards ab the foot in the middle size. To make this skirt for a lady of mediam size will require three and a halt yards of maternal forty-four inches wide. An Autumn Military Effect. Military effects dominate the new season’s styles, braid and brass but- tons entering largely into the decora- tions. All shades of blue are worn from the light greyish cadet to the darkest navy. A perfect, glove-fittang adjustment is the prominent characteristic of the ‘‘Admiral” basque shown in the large illustration. 1t is fitted with the usual double darts, under-arm and side back gores, that curve higher on the back than is usual and may be made with or without a centre back seam, The fronts lap in double breasted style to the neck, closing with graduated rows of brass buttons. The lower outline reaches a trifle below the waist at the sides curving over the hips to pretty points front and back. Shoulder straps are included in the neck seam, the pointed lower end be- ing secured by single brass buttons. The high military. eollar is trimmed with braid and all the free edges of the basque are similarly outlines. The sleeves are shaped with upper and under portions, the moderate ful. ness being gathered at the top and the wrists have cuffs simulated by double rows of braid. —— SS —— AN ENDLESS CHAIN. The Slick Scheme of a Western Pooh- Bah to Get Credit. “I suppose we all get caught at times,” remarked a well-known busi- ness man, the other day, but I bave had an experience that was particu- larly mortifying for one who has been in business for forty years. “I receiwed some time ago a letter from a party living in a little town in the west who wanted a small bill of goods. “Not finding his name in either Dun’s or Bradstreet’s I wrote the postmaster for the man’s standing. I received a very flattering letter in re- turn, saying that the party I inquired about was one of the town’s solid citi- zens and good for any amount. ‘‘This allayed any suspicion that I had and I forwarded the goods or- dered. “I sent three bills before I received an answer, and then it was not satis- factory. I allowed the matter to run for some time, and at last, getting a saucy answer in reply to a letter of mine asking for a settlement, I lost my temper and wrote the postmaster a letter, telling him to hand the mat- ter over to the leadingsattorney in the town for collection no matter what the cost would be. “It wasn’t long before I received an answer from the postmaster saying he had followed my instructions and handed the matter to an attorney, who had succeeded in collecting the amount but at a considerable expense. In fact, the attorney had a bill against me for $25 more than he had collect- ed and that he, the postmaster, had paid it and would look te me for the amonnt. ‘‘Here was a situation. TI hadn’t instructed the postmaster to act as my cashier, but thinking that that was the western way of it, and not caring to have the fool postmas- ter lose the amount, I sent him a check and considered the matter closed. : ‘‘But the other day I chanced to meet a party who formerly lived in the town and I asked him if he knew the party who had beaten me out of a bill of goods. He said he did. He was a general utility man for the whole neighborhood, ran a general store, kept the postoffice, and when he could get nothing else to do, took what business he could get as a law- yer. He added that he appeared to be making money, but it was a mys- tery to everyone how he managed it. “But it was no mystery to me. I had seen a great light. He had an endless chain arrangement that will make him a fortune it someone doesn’t get mad and out there and kill him.” —Detroit Free Press. v £0 QUAINT AND CURIOUS. A church at Seidlitz, in Bohemia, contains a chandelier made of human bones. The Danish flag is the oldest in existence, dating back to 1219 or thereabouts. : India has an anomaly in the shape of a fly which attacks and devours large spiders. It is reported that rats climb the orange trees of southern Italy and suck the blood oranges. The Japanese are, as a race, so small that it is necessary to build specially low bicycles for them. In a recently discovered Roman tomb the skeleton of a woman was found which had a complete set of false “teeth, beautifully wrought in pure gold. A whale recently captured in Arctic waters was found to have imbedded in its side a harpoon belonging to a whaling vessel that had been out of service nearly half a century. An Iowa physician not long ago had under treatment a boy suffering from what seemed to be typhoid. It was found subsequently that the boy had swallowed several lemon seeds, which had remained 1m the alimentary tract two weeks and had sprouted fully one- eighth of an inch long. A The of Old Times, ;Sailors in olden days must have been sheep-like in patience. It is true that when a man made sail from the: Thames he went prepared for months, running into: vears, of salt water. The vatience I refer to is the Sailor i > 2 . “eapacity of enduring the hindrance of light winds, the abortive struggles of the precious round bow driven through it dead to leeward, with the yards fore and aft; above all the long calms of the tropics, when. the fresh water stank, when the ship’s bread crawled on the toes of the innumerable sea worm that dieth not, when the scurvy was clapping the grinning mask of anguish and death upon your shipmate’s face, and when, if you looked over the ship’s side into the sea, the water burnt, the sea snakes revolved in wheels of fire, and you saw things with the eyes of Cole: ridge’s Ancient Mariner. But those seaman who thus endured were the men who mast-headed the flag of yom country. Honored be their namesi It would be absurd to say that we shall not look upon their like again. They are with us in their children. But I say, hat in band, with deepes! reverence, when I think of their ships, their slender equipment, the unknown, measureless seas* of those ages, that the sailor of old times was a man !—Pall Mall Magazine, Indian Wars Since the Civil War. Since the civil war the chief Indiar wars with their date and cost have been: Apache, 1873,$637,000; Modoc, 1872, $399,857; Northern Cheyenne: and Sioux, 1876-77, $1,874,511; Ne: Perces, 1877, $961,329; Bannock, 1878, $556,696; Northern Cheyennes, 1878-79, $34,209, and Sioux, 1890-91, $2,000,000.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers