nstituted authority; and it was only when the inhabitants of these
villages went _en masse_ to the Khalifa, begging to be spared, that he
at length acceded to their request.

When it was found that the revenue of the beit el mal was insufficient
to provide for the rapidly-increasing Baggara population, Abdullah
ordered half the produce of the Gezireh lands to be given to the beit el
mal, the other half being retained by the owners. This was published as
a solemn decree, and all judges enjoined to see that it was properly
carried out. Ibrahim Nur, the son of Nur Gereifawi, was sent with a body
of soldiers and Baggara to assist in carrying out the order in the
Gezireh, and he gained an unenviable notoriety for the ruthless severity
with which he enforced his authority.

In accordance with the Khalifa's instructions, out of every hundred
ardebs he seized a half, and on the remaining half he levied the "ushr"
and "zeka" taxes, so that eventually the unfortunate cultivator retained
only thirty-seven and a half per cent. of his original quantity;
besides, he was made responsible for the transport to the river of the
sixty-two and a-half per cent. Frequently the fields were far distant
from the river, which involved hiring camels to carry the grain, so that
finally the owner was probably left with absolutely nothing. In this way
Ibrahim gathered upwards of 60,000 ardebs from the Blue and White Niles.

Ibrahim gained the title of the "Gordon of the Gezireh" from the
extraordinarily rapid way in which he moved from one village to the
other and gave his instructions.

Here is another proof of the Khalifa's injustice when dealing in matters
concerning his own countrymen. About two days' journey from Omdurman up
the White Nile are certain very highly-cultivated districts, and it
occurred to the Khalifa to send there the Taisha who were not then
employed, so that they might cultivate and at the same time remain in
touch with him. He therefore sent a certain Sheikh Wad el Bedri to
select the most favoured spots in which the Taisha were to settle.

When the inhabitants of these districts learnt what was intended, they
begged and prayed Wad el Bedri to avert this terrible calamity which
threatened them, assuring him that if he would assist them they would do
anything he wanted, short of having the Baggara as settlers in their
country; this request they accompanied with a good round sum of money.

Bedri then returned to Omdurman, w