oro.

Having briefly considered the Khalifa's operations within the Sudan, let
us now turn and follow his movements and intentions regarding Egypt.
Ever since the annihilation of Hicks Pasha's expedition the conquest of
Egypt had been the dream of the Mahdi's life. Those of his followers who
had seen Egypt described it in the most glowing terms to the Sudanese,
whose cupidity was fully aroused. The immense wealth in Cairo, the
lovely women in the harems, had excited their most ardent desires.

The Mahdi himself had decided on the Khedive's palace of Abdin as his
place of residence, whence it was his intention to proceed to Syria, and
after conquering it, to advance on Mecca. He had prophesied that the
conquest of Egypt should be carried out by Khalifa Sherif's flag, and he
himself had done all in his power to incite the Egyptians to revolt. He
wrote numbers of letters to the leading sheikhs and principal people in
Cairo, and had he not died, there is no doubt his influence would have
permeated, in no small degree, into Egypt. Several people in Egypt
believed in him as the true Mahdi, and besides, he was now the ruler of
hundreds of thousands of people. With his death belief in Mahdiism began
to decline. His successor, it is true, was a man of boundless energy,
and had just as ambitious ideas as his predecessor in regard to the
conquest of Egypt, but circumstances had entirely altered.

[Illustration: AN ARAB SHEIKH OF UPPER EGYPT.]

The Mahdi's death and the Khalifa's accession had caused Mahdiism to
break up into two distinct parties, viz. the Baggara Arabs, who called
themselves the Arabs of the Sudan, and the "Aulad Belad," or country
people, such as the Danagla, Barabra, Jaalin, and other tribes on the
White Nile. This division in Mahdieh considerably weakened it. Wad En
Nejumi and his emirs belonged to the section opposed to the Khalifa, and
who would like to have freed themselves from his control; in consequence
Abdullah always arranged that a Baggara emir should be attached to
Nejumi, to keep him informed of all the latter's doings.

The Mahdi had laid down the plan for invading Egypt, which should be by
combined movements from Dongola towards Halfa, and from Abu Hamed
towards Korosko; and accordingly, when the English evacuated Dongola in
June 1885, Mohammed el Kheir, the conqueror of Berber, together with
Abdel Majid, at once took possession of the province, and the first
action which took place between t