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CHAPTER XXIII.

SOUTH AFRICA.

ON arrival at Waterloo Station the first friend I met was (Khartoum) Gordon. I then went to thank the First Sea Lord at the Admiralty, Sir Cooper-Key, for the good service he had done me in getting me attached to the navy. He rather astonished me by saying, "We have had two meetings here about your getting the Victoria Cross. At the first it was

decided to send in your name; but at the second we came to the conclusion that we could not recommend you without doing the same for those who landed with you at Mex." I begged he would think nothing more about the matter, as I did not consider that what I had done was worthy of the Cross. I had had a real good time with the navy, which was quite enough, and Lord Northbrook had sent in my name to the War Office for a brevet, as he did for the senior officer of the Marines present with the fleet on the 11th July. I also subsequently received from the Secretary of the United States Navy, sent through Lord Granville at the Foreign Office, the report of the American naval attaché with our fleet on the operations at Alexandria, in which was a pleasant little paragraph about the Mex affair.

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Soon after arriving in England her late Majesty the Queen did me the honour of commanding me to dine at Windsor. After that came invitations to War Office and Admiralty receptions, and then followed City dinners. These were the most trying, as I had to make speeches, to which I was not then accustomed -all this for only a few months of most interesting work in Egypt! It was really too much, and I was well pleased when the time came for me to return (March 1883) to my battalion at Londonderry and become a simple regimental officer again, with nothing to think about except how to fully enjoy all the fun offered to soldiers in that most hospitable of stations. Derry almost made one wish to be a subaltern again, that of all ranks being the best for having a good time. However, I did not do badly, and, amongst other delights, had some first-rate salmon-fishing from the lessee of the Earn. /

The Channel Squadron came into Lough Swilly in the course of the summer, and I found that comparatively few of the officers had accepted an invitation to a city ball given in their honour, on account of the difficulty of getting rooms at the hotel. I came to the rescue with an offer to put them up somehow. Whereupon one of my naval friends, having unlimited confidence in me, wired up, "Twenty-three naval officers will come and stay with you"! Our house being very diminutive, this rather startled my wife, when-happy thought!—we remembered there was a girls' school at the end of the street, and the girls all away for the holidays. Although the schoolmistress was somewhat taken aback at first, she, with Irish quickness and true hospitality, got beds for all the officers. It was with difficulty that we induced her

afterwards to allow us to pay even for having the linen, towels, &c., washed. We managed to provide dinners and breakfasts for all my friends, and firstrate partners at the ball.

The only professional work I did during that happy time in Derry was to write out, at the request of the quartermaster-general, Sir Arthur Herbert, a lecture on soldiers' food, and deliver it at the United Service Institute in London. The subject was one in which General Herbert took special interest, and I, when doing regimental duty, had tried various experiments for getting the best nutritive value out of the rations and messing money. I was well pleased to learn that the information given by me was found to be useful.

One morning I saw in the papers that Gordon had given up his work for the King of the Belgians in Central Africa, and was on his way to Egypt, to go to Khartoum. I at once rushed across to London, saw the A.G., Lord Wolseley, obtained permission to accompany Gordon if he would take me, and wired at once to Port Said to meet him on his arrival. I was ready to start by that night's mail if he said "Come." When offering to pay for my wire, I was decidedly pleased at the Eastern Company declining to charge me anything. Gordon's answer was, "Will not take another European." I afterwards had a post-card from him from Khartoum, saying it was useless for me to come, as he would have everything settled and be out of the place by a certain date. Then followed a text, which was almost prophetic as regards his ultimate fate that post-card I keep as one of my greatest treasures.

My next expedition across the water was to Brussels, the King of the Belgians sending for me to do Gordon's

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work in Central Africa whilst he was in Khartoum. The king was most kind, asking me to a grand court ball, and introducing me to the queen. He also wished I could spare the time to go down to Lacken and meet Brialmont; but I thought it better to return to London at once and see if the authorities would sanction my accepting the grand offer made by the king. At the War Office I was plainly given to understand that if I went in for such a side line, my soldiering would be at an end, the authorities in those days were not so broad-minded and far-seeing as they are now; so I returned to regimental work again. The regiment was now at Mullingar: the people in the big country houses were hospitality itself, but somehow Mullingar was tame after ever-tobe-remembered Derry. I happened to be summoned over to town to give evidence before a Parliamentary Committee about the breakdown of the transport in Egypt, but I declined to say anything connected with my confidential work in Egypt without full permission from those concerned; although, for certain reasons which may be guessed at, nothing would have been more satisfactory to myself than a full statement about everything in my books. books. A member, A member, doubtless in fun, referred to the Clock Tower as suitable for witnesses who would not speak. My answer was, "I prefer the Clock Tower to Mullingar." The Committee decided they would not require me to produce my books.

When General Warren's expedition was being organised for Bechuanaland, I was told at headquarters that I was to be on his staff. Just then, however, the colonel of the Welsh Regiment in Natal died from a snake-bite, and I was nominated for the

command. This was considered a better appointment than the one on the staff. Three days later I was on my way to Natal in a hired transport, with a battery of Mountain Artillery on board. We were to call at Suez to ship remounts for a regiment of dragoons in Natal. It was at that time considered quite possible that Warren's expedition might bring on a Boer war, and that there would be business in Natal.

On the arrival of the transport at Malta I was down with rheumatism and unable to leave my cabin. Old friends and acquaintances commanded the men-of-war then in harbour, and I could not but feel much flattered on finding I was still remembered by them. Every captain paid me the compliment of calling on me.

At Suez we shipped 235 horses: they suffered considerably from the excessive heat. I hardly dare mention what the thermometer rose to, especially when we were in the latitude of Zanzibar. Inclined planes were arranged along which to bring the horses on deck in batches at a time: this had an excellent effect, and is now mentioned for possible future imitation. The young officers of the battery had to go through very different "stables" from what they had been accustomed to at home. The heat below was so great, notwithstanding our efforts at ventilation by means of sails, that officers as well as men had to strip off every article of clothing when the stalls were being cleaned and washed. Although anthrax broke out, we lost only thirteen horses: all the rest were landed in such good condition that the officer commanding the cavalry regiment to which they went despatched a special report to the War Office, and I received in consequence a very complimentary letter. I at once wrote back that, except as commanding officer, I had nothing