How sorely the column was pressed may be shown from one incident.
While he was preparing to evacuate Abu Klea, Buller received
information to the effect that the enemy was advancing upon him with a
force of eight thousand men. He determined upon a desperate measure.
He left standing the forts which he had intended to demolish and
filled up the larger wells.

A desert well, to the Oriental, is almost sacred, and never even in
savage warfare would such a course have been adopted. But Buller knew
that the absence of water was the only thing that could check the rush
of the oncoming hordes, and this deed, terrible as it may have seemed
to the Eastern mind, was his sole means of covering his retreat.
Orders were therefore given to fill up all the principal wells with
stones and rubbish. It was certainly an effectual measure, for the
enemy would be delayed for many hours, perhaps days, before he could
restore the wells and obtain sufficient water to enable him to
continue in pursuit of the British force which was so hopelessly
outnumbered. In the circumstances Buller could not be blamed for
saving British lives at the price of Oriental tradition.

Sir Evelyn Wood was also sent with reinforcements from Korti to
strengthen the force at Gakdul Wells. There he met French for the
first time. "I saw him," Sir Evelyn relates, "when our people were
coming back across the desert after our failure, the whole force
depressed by the death of Gordon. I came on him about a hundred miles
from the river--the last man of the last section of the rear guard! We
were followed by bands of Arabs. They came into our bivouac on the
night of which I am speaking, and the night following they carried
off some of our slaughter cattle."[4]