The Omdurman Fort is ill placed, as it cannot see the ground down to the river, and is distant 1200 yards from the river. The Arabs on left bank of the White Nile opposite Husseinyeh number 500 (I expect all are my soldiers), and they are so far away from any reserve that it would be easy to crush them before they were aided, if we dared to try, which we do not. I was at Mogrim Fort for half an hour, during which time the Arabs fired, as I calculated, fifteen shells and 8000 rounds, and no one was touched; indeed, where their bullets went I could not see nor hear. No stores could stand that, and up to sundown they were still at it with rifles and guns. Bourré, in spite of all the heavy firing, has no casualties; 80,000 rounds would scarcely cover our united expenditure to-day.
Reports from the Arabs at different times said the Mahdi had brought 200 (some say 120) camel loads of ammunition (Remingtons) from Obeyed—say 200, and say that each camel carried 2 boxes, each box 1000, so that he had, before he began, 800,000 rounds; he must have expended in the last week 250,000 to 300,000 rounds, and has left 550,000 rounds or 500,000 rounds. I do not expect he has 200,000 rounds left, which is his weekly expenditure if he goes on at the rate he is going now. We turn out on an average 40,000 rounds a week, and are well ahead of our requirements. Looking at the Arab gunners with my telescope, they never seem to bother themselves about aim, but just to load and fire. It is, of course, different when the steamers are in action. The officer in command of Mogrim Fort was wounded in the arm at sundown. The captain of Husseinyeh died to-day. We suppose that on board the Husseinyeh, are the men I mentioned as having jumped out of the boat last night on the challenge of the sentry, also a soldier of Omdurman who swam off to her with letters from Ferratch Bey, commandant of the fort, so we are sending off a boat to Husseinyeh to take them off. A workman in the arsenal was wounded to-day by a ball from Bourré, distant 2300 yards. The Arab fire on Bourré renders the vicinity of the palace far more dangerous than Bourré, the balls fall so plentifully around the Mudirat, which is close by, that the Greek consul was obliged to lay to for some time till the firing ceased: it is at least 2500 to 3000 yards from the palace to the place the Arabs fire from.
We have put the gun of the steamer Ismailia on the bank of the Nile, to cover the approach to the Husseinyeh; the Greek consul says “the balls fall like water” on the road leading to the palace. I believe a good deal, if you have the ammunition, in the dropping fire of rifles, even at three thousand yards; the balls that fell on the palace are fairly flattened, showing they have plenty of life to kill. The buglers have communicated with Fort Omdurman, who are all well. 8 p.m. to-morrow we will have signals with flags. Out of evil comes good—if Husseinyeh was not aground, the Arabs, instead of concentrating their force and attention on her, would have devoted it on the fort, which, cut off, would suffer; as it is now, the fort is unmolested. Bullets rained on the hospital yesterday and to-day, but did no harm! I calculate that the Ismailia has two thousand bullet marks on her.
November 15.—Last night we sent off a boat to the Husseinyeh, and took off the soldier of Ferratch Ullah Bey, who had come from Omdurman, also the ten men who jumped into the water from their boat the night before. Ferratch Ullah writes he is all well; he wants ammunition!!! he had 230,000 rounds three days ago: he says he has now 150,000 rounds, also he has regulars, 470, each 100 rounds, 47,000; he has irregulars, 170, each 200 rounds, 34,000 altogether; in magazine of fort, 150,000 rounds, and with the men 81,000; total ammunition in fort, 231,000 rounds: yet he calls for ammunition!!! Hicks took 1,000,000. The buglers communicated well with the fort at Omdurman; buglers then spoke the soldiers on Mahdi’s side, but they did not answer; we invited them to come over to us.
The five feluccas, which took the men off the Husseinyeh, were not seen by the Arabs. I sent an engineer to take off the steam-valves of the Husseinyeh; the five feluccas took off, this time, everything from Husseinyeh, biscuit, ammunition, &c., &c. It appears that the Arabs, who were watching the Husseinyeh, had gone off to Kerowé, opposite Halfeyeh; but this is doubtful.
At dawn the Arabs opened a heavy fire with the usual futile efforts on Bourré, also they fired with gun and musketry on Omdurman Fort.
At Omdurman Fort they have had, in the last few days, four killed and sixteen wounded.
A shell from the Arabs struck Husseinyeh yesterday, but did no harm, for she is well aground. No wounded at Bourré to-day by the Arab fire.
The Bimbashi, who was wounded in the arm yesterday evening, was lying on his angarep[232] when he was wounded: he thought it a secure place; he died to-day.