Post Office on River Bank, Boma.
Office of Secretary-General, Boma.
Emboldened by what they erroneously regarded as a great victory, the Arabs lost no time in attacking the State camp. But this time the tables were turned, and they were repulsed with heavy loss. The arrival of reinforcements from Kassongo contributed to this result; but in consequence of some error, Kassongo was left without sufficient guard. This fact coming to the knowledge of the Arabs, they hastened to take advantage of it. To avert this calamity, De Wouters, by order of Captain Dhanis, marched night and day, through a violent storm, and effectually intercepted them. Not a day passed without a fight, victory inclining first to one and then to the other belligerent. On the whole, the Congo State troops continued to hold their own fairly well against great odds. Wearying of the protracted struggle, the Arabs decided to make a desperate attack in full force upon the State camp. They selected a foggy day on which to make their assault, and were greatly aided thereby. At first they succeeded so well that they actually entered the State camp and engaged the Congo troops in a hand-to-hand combat. The struggle lasted five hours. The State troops lost fifty men, including the brave Captain Ponthier, notwithstanding which they succeeded in completely repulsing the Arabs, whom they chased right up to Rumaliza’s boma. The Arab losses were far heavier than the State’s. Captain Dhanis had every reason to be satisfied. Leaving De Wouters in active command, he now returned to Kassongo to reorganise.
After the departure of Dhanis, De Wouters continued the aggressive policy of his chief. In attacking the boma of Lubukine, Lieutenant De Heusch was killed, and so hot was the fight that his men fled. De Wouters lost five men killed (including De Heusch) and ten wounded; but the Arab loss was far heavier, and included Sefu, the son of Tippo Tip, who had returned from German territory and was pursuing his old courses.
It was not until nearly the end of December that Dhanis was again strong enough to take the offensive. By that time his troops had been rested and reinforced. They were none too early in taking the field, for information now came to hand that Rashid had rallied his forces after their defeat at Stanley Falls and was hastening to join Rumeliza.
To deal with this combination, Dhanis despatched Commandant Gillain with one hundred and eighty soldiers and two hundred auxiliaries to cut off Rumeliza’s retreat, while De Wouters attacked Rumeliza’s great boma at Bena Kalunga, Dhanis, with two Krupp guns, personally commanding the reserve. Rumeliza’s boma proved impregnable, the Krupp guns failing to injure it, and news arrived that fresh forces were on their way from Tanganyika to aid Rumeliza.
Matters stood badly for the State when the opportune arrival of Commandant Lothaire, with three hundred men, changed the outlook entirely. This occurred on January 9, 1894, a day marked by another singular piece of good fortune. The boma which had so long defied the best efforts of the besiegers was set on fire and destroyed, a shot from one of the Krupp guns having blown up the Arab magazine. In their haste to abandon it, many Arabs were shot, while others were drowned in a desperate attempt to cross the river. By cutting off their water supply, the other garrisons were compelled to surrender, so that within three days over two thousand Arabs were taken prisoners by the State troops.
The Arab power was now effectually broken. To break it was an arduous task, expensive both in blood and money, but on the whole it was conducted as humanely as it is possible to conduct military operations. The sufferings of the Europeans were fully as great as, if not greater than, the sufferings of their enemies. Proportionate to their numbers, their mortality was higher. More succumbed to disease and the hardships of the campaign than were killed by the enemy’s bullets, among them the gallant De Wouters, who passed away in the very hour of his triumph.