of the _Abbas_ and her crew; having done this, her
fate was in higher hands than his."

CHAPTER XVI

THE FALL OF KHARTOUM

Fortunately for the public, as soon as Colonel Stewart left, Gordon
commenced, in addition to all his other duties, writing journals of
events at Khartoum, in which doubtless he recapitulated much of what
had been given in the Diary of Events he had sent with Stewart. On
September 21st, the General received authentic news that an expedition
was actually on its way to Khartoum. On September 30th he sent five
steamers to Metemmah to meet the advancing army, so that there should
be no delay on his part in rendering help. By the steamers he sent his
Journals made up to date, and it is from these that authentic
information is obtained. The despatch of these steamers to Metemmah was
a most unselfish act on his part; indeed, it is by no means certain
that their presence at Khartoum might not have prevented the crowning
disaster later on. He calculated that each steamer was worth to him at
least 2000 men, so that he practically reduced his force by something
like 10,000 men in order to assist the Relief Expedition. Since the
Nile had risen these vessels had considerably increased in utility, and
they had been most valuable in the defence of Khartoum. Each was well
provisioned, so that they would not have required to draw on the
slender resources of the garrison.

On November 5th Gordon says:--

"A curious thing has happened; my friend Kitchener sent up the
post; he wrapped the letters in some old newspapers (he gave me no
news in his letter), the old newspapers were thrown out into the
garden: there a clerk who knew some English found them blowing
about, and gave them to the apothecary of the hospital, who knows
English. The doctor found him reading them, saw date 15th
September, and secured them for me; they are like gold, as you may
imagine, since we have had no news since 24th February 1884! These
papers gave us far more information than any of your letters. Did
K. send them by accident or on purpose?"

In the newspaper appeared the following statement in the form of a
heading: "Lord Wolseley seen off at Victoria Station for the Gordon
Relief Expedition." To this Gordon appended, "_No! for the relief of
the Soudan garrisons_;" and he extracted another statement to the
following effect, "An official telegram received here from Wady Halfa
states that,