A Narrative of the Expedition to Dongola and Sennaar - Under the Command of His Excellence Ismael Pasha, undertaken - by Order of His Highness Mehemmed Ali Pasha, Viceroy of - Egypt, By An American In The Service Of The Viceroy by George Bethune English
page 44 of 121 (36%)
page 44 of 121 (36%)
![]() | ![]() |
|
and five of the Abbadies (or auxiliaries mounted on dromedaries) were
impaled for having seized some camels from the peasants. It was truly honorable to the army and its commander to see villages embosomed in a camp, whose inhabitants, men, women and children, pursued their usual occupations, without molestation and without fear. In the country below, which had been the scene of combat, the fields were deserted, and for several days I had not seen a peasant at work upon the ground. In the vicinity of the camp of the Pasha, where the people had submitted themselves, the discordant creak of the water-wheels frequently attracted the ear, and the peasants cultivated their fields within musket shot of the camp of a conqueror. On the 21st of Rebi, a detachment, consisting of three hundred cavalry, departed from the camp for the country of the Berbers, to secure its submission and to obtain horses and camels for the army. Learning that it was the intention of the Pasha to march in a few days, to pitch his camp about eight hours march farther up the river, I wished to ascertain whether I could have the horses and camels I needed before the Pasha marched. His reply to my demand was, that he had no camels, at present, that were not appropriated to some service or other, but that, as soon as he had them, I should receive what I needed. I was consequently obliged to embark in a boat to accompany the march of the camp as, without camels to carry my tent and baggage, I could not accompany it by land. On the 25th, all the boats followed the departure of the troops; the wind was ahead, and the direction of the river the same as repeatedly before mentioned. We proceeded slowly by the cordel. This circumstance gave me an opportunity of visiting the Pyramids which I have mentioned as in view from Meroe. They stand about half a mile from the right hand bank of the river. I counted twenty-seven, none of them perfect, and most of them in ruins; the greater part of them are built |
|