ply
between Shellal and Halfa. The military railway ran from Halfa to
Sarras. South of Sarras supplies were forwarded by camels. To meet the
increased demands of transport, 4,500 camels were purchased in Egypt
and forwarded in boats to Assuan, whence they marched via Korosko to
the front. The British Government had authorised the construction of
the military railway to Akasha, and a special railway battalion was
collected at Assuan, through which place sleepers and other material at
once began to pass to Sarras. The strategic railway construction
will, however, form the subject of a later chapter, which I shall not
anticipate.

By the 1st of April, less than three weeks from the commencement of the
advance, the whole line of communications had been organised and was
working efficiently, although still crowded with the concentrating
troops.

As soon as the 16th Battalion of reservists arrived at Suakin, the IXth
Soudanese were conveyed by transports to Kossier, and marched thence
across the desert to Kena. The distance was 120 miles, and the fact that
in spite of two heavy thunderstorms--rare phenomena in Egypt--it was
covered in four days is a notable example of the marching powers of the
black soldiers. It had been determined that the Xth Soudanese should
follow at once, but circumstances occurred which detained them on the
Red Sea littoral and must draw the attention of the reader thither.

The aspect and history of the town and port of Suakin might afford a
useful instance to a cynical politician. Most of the houses stand on
a small barren island which is connected with the mainland by a narrow
causeway. At a distance the tall buildings of white coral, often five
storeys high, present an imposing appearance, and the prominent chimneys
of the condensing machinery--for there is scarcely any fresh water--seem
to suggest manufacturing activity. But a nearer view reveals the
melancholy squalor of the scene. A large part of the town is deserted.
The narrow streets wind among tumbled-down and neglected houses. The
quaintly carved projecting windows of the facades are boarded up. The
soil exhales an odour of stagnation and decay. The atmosphere is
rank with memories of waste and failure. The scenes that meet the eye
intensify these impressions. The traveller who lands on Quarantine
Island is first confronted with the debris of the projected
Suakin-Berber Railway. Two or three locomotives that have neither felt
the pressu