fter a journey of twenty-eight days and
travelling _via_ Berber, we reached Khartum; here the pleasant gardens
and shady groves of date-palms impressed us most favourably. Standing on
the high river bank, just in front of the Mission gardens, were the
various members of the Mission, headed by Father Alois Bonomi, also the
Austrian Consul Hansal and the Italian Consul Legnani, who gave us a
hearty welcome. The whole city was _en fete_, to celebrate the return of
the Governor-General Rauf Pasha from Gedaref. After landing, we walked
through the lovely garden towards the Mission buildings, and here, in
the principal parlour, were collected Rauf Pasha, Giegler Pasha, Gessi
Pasha, who had just returned quite worn out from his campaigns in the
Bahr el Ghazal; the courageous Slatin, fresh from Darfur; Marcopoli Bey,
Doctor Zurbuchen, Marquet, the African traveller Jean Maria Schuver, and
many others who had come to welcome Bishop Comboni on his arrival.

On the 15th of March we celebrated the fiftieth birthday of Bishop
Comboni with general rejoicings: in the evening the European colony
dined at the Mission, and then followed a _soiree_. Little did we think
of the terrible fate that was in store for the majority of those
gathered together on that happy evening!

In the meantime Slatin Bey had been appointed Governor-General of
Darfur, and he considered it his duty to proceed as soon as possible to
take up his new post. Our bishop accepted Slatin's proffered invitation
to travel together as far as El Obeid, and on the 29th of March we
embarked on a steamer placed at our disposal by Rauf Pasha and proceeded
to Tur el Hadra. We were accompanied thus far by Marcopoli Bey, Dr.
Zurbuchen and Marquet, and here, mounting on camels, we made a rapid
march across the Kordofan deserts, arriving at El Obeid on the 5th of
April. No sooner had we dismounted, than two telegrams were handed to
us: one announced the sudden death, on his return to Khartum, of Dr.
Zurbuchen, and the other described the death of the Czar Alexander of
Russia at the hands of the Nihilists.

We remained at El Obeid while Slatin was making arrangements for his
journey to Darfur. Bishop Comboni then made a tour through Jebel Nuba,
returned to El Obeid and subsequently to Khartum, where he died on the
10th of October. God, in His mercy, took him away so that he should not
behold the terrible events in the Sudan which followed soon after his
death.

I left El Obeid o