Next day, Sunday the 26th at 5 p. m. we arrived at Wady Halfa. The weather was still the same as ever since we landed at Alexandria, not a cloud, not uncomfortably warm, but warm enough. A steam tug came out from Wady Halfa and brought orders for us to proceed as far as the river was navigable for the steamer. This brought us about four miles above Wady Halfa where the tow was disbanded. The boats then proceeded another mile and we camped. During this mile we had the first opportunity to work the boats, (still all light) and that evening the opinions about them varied greatly.
No sooner were our tents pitched than Lord Wolseley arrived. He shook hands with some, exchanged a few words with our commander, Colonel Denison, and was off again. We found here about a hundred whalers waiting for us. We were at the foot of the second cataract and the following morning were ordered to take the light boats up the cataract to the first naval camp, about three miles distant, to make one trip and if possible two. Seven men took one boat and all the crews made two trips, some getting through early, some late.
The first trip I made, I took a different channel from those who started before. I stepped the two masts with which the boat was provided and used the sails and the six oars only, the wind being as usual from the north. We needed all our resources but we reached the camp in good time. We walked back the three miles took another boat and tried the channel generally taken, it being apparently the shortest route. I had to use the tow-line at one place where there was a "gate" or channel, as we say in Canada, with about three feet of a fall, about eighteen feet wide and a good standing place to tow from. Right there was stationed our acquaintance, the reporter, in his little tug moored above the gate. One of the voyageurs while wading must have stepped into some seam, he jumped quickly back into his boat, leaving behind his moccasin and said he was bitten by a crocodile, which all of us were kind enough to believe and we advised him not to wade any more. All had accomplished their task in the evening and come back to our camp. Soon afterwards General Sir Evelyn Wood arrived and went towards Colonel Denison's tent. I heard my name called by my officer and went before the General who demanded the number of my men and wanted to see them. Getting the men in line, the General asked me if they spoke English and I said they spoke enough for boating purposes, but no more. The General then left. After supper I was informed by my officer that I had to take thirty-five men with me and go about a hundred miles up the river.
Here commences the second railway of the river route, about thirty miles long, and the first train on the following morning brought Lord Wolseley on his way to the front. The second train had on board, Col. Alleyne, Lord Avonmore, Capt. Moore, Lieut. Perry and Lieut. C. R. Orde. This train took me and my men on and stopped at Gemai where we found several boats which had been portaged on cars. We pitched tents and did not leave until 10 o'clock the next morning, October 29th. I picked crews as nearly equal as I could, with a captain to each and started with six boats, nearly light, only the five officers and their luggage on board. I had the honor to start in boat No. 1 with Col. Alleyne on board, the officers taking a boat each of different numbers, reached Sarras about 5 p. m. a distance of eighteen miles. The river here is very narrow, in some places about a thousand feet and the current very swift. I had to get a line out only once. At Sarras each boat took on nearly two tons of ammunition and stores, also additional passengers. We proceeded two miles up and camped. There were many islands and rocks both in sight and sunken, but room enough to go anywhere. The shores are barren rock. Starting next day with a light breeze, I soon found that I wanted more wind to proceed under sail as the current grew swifter and my boat had now on board, besides Col. Alleyne, his servant, his interpreter, one corporal and one native swimmer, then myself with five men and about two tons of freight. This was the time to find out what we could do with our boats, the north wind had freshened, which gave us more speed and with the help of five good oars we dodged the swift currents, catching eddies and after two hours trial the captains congratulated each other upon being masters of the situation. We soon began to race, each captain using his own judgment as to which channel to take, which gave each a chance to be ahead or behind according to his luck. When I signalled for dinner all headed for shore and it was here that Louis Capitaine was so unaccountably lost, within sixty feet from shore. Louis had the bow oar in Peter January's boat and he rose when nearing shore. While standing in the bow he fell over, the headway of the boat made the distance a hundred feet before he was seen to rise. Lieut. Perry threw a life-preserver and ordered the Arab swimmer, which this boat carried, to assist him, the swimmer jumped immediately and swam towards the spot but Louis disappeared before assistance reached him. My boat was about sixty yards behind Peter's boat coming up in the eddy behind a rock. When striking the current I noticed Louis' helmet and the Arab swimmer. We went ashore to prepare dinner and I really believe that Colonel Alleyne, the officer in charge of this convoy, felt so badly about this accident, that he did not take anything. He hired natives to search for the body and give it decent burial, if found. After dinner we proceeded with one man short. The water not being so bad we made the Semnah cataract that afternoon. This cataract was thought the worst in the whole route. Colonel Alleyne showed me up to the gate and said "now everything is yours." It must be understood that this gate does by no means reach across the river. The river is about 1000 feet wide here and the gate situated between the east shore and an island is about twenty feet wide. Not being sure of the water I tried a light boat first. I took boat No. 1 through without any trouble, but would not trust the full load on any boat. We all lightened somewhat and passed the six boats through with tow lines inside of an hour. The freight we had left was portaged by camels. We reloaded and started under sail four miles up in smooth water and camped. Colonel Alleyne held an inquest that night on Louis Capitaine's death and despatched a man to the nearest telegraph station with the news of his death. A few weeks after this despatch was sent, Colonel Kennedy showed me a copy of the Ottawa Free Press, in which the Free Press made free indeed reporting Captain Louis Jackson as drowned. All the captains appeared pleased with their boats, talking about who made the best run and each boasting to have the best boat. From this cataract to the next one above, at Ambigol, is counted seventeen miles, which stretch proved much the same as below Semnah cataract; plenty of dodging and crossing the stream to get the side of the river with the lesser current, the boats being such good travellers and answering their helms so well with a stiff breeze, we found ourselves in a genuine boatman's paradise. In spite of the free wind we had all day, we had to get lines out and track several times. We camped on an island about a mile below Ambigol cataract. In the evening the captains argued as to which of them had run the most on sandbanks. These sand shoals are formed behind large rocks in a manner never seen in our own waters, and it was strange to notice that like situated rocks would not alike accumulate sand, some had shoals behind them and some had none, still all showed the same eddy on the water surface, and the water being muddy we could not tell which to trust and so gave them all wider berths in future.
CATARACT OF AMBIGOL.
The following day, the 1st of November we reached the post of Ambigol about 8 a. m. We found this cataract different from Semnah cataract. This has no "gate" but a very crooked channel, swift current and very bad tracking. It required the combined force of thirty-five men to pull one boat with its full load. The cataract is one mile long and the roughest part is at the foot and at the head. It was in this mile of the route that afterwards three white men were lost. We got through this cataract about noon and cooked dinner just above it. It must be remembered that the route was entirely unknown to us all and that we had to find our channels and often did not take the best one. From this out I ordered my captains to take a different channel each, there being so many, so as to find the best one for future purposes. The boats being so equally matched, we could easily tell who had the wrong channel, for he was soon left astern. The officer in charge, Col. Alleyne, who is himself an experienced boatman, was so well pleased with our progress that he never interfered but left it all to us. It must also not be forgotten that the boys had been forty days travelling, doing no hard work, before we took the boats and by this time their hands were very sore. The rocky shores were so bold that poles could only be of use in keeping off and it was impossible to assist by shoving ahead.
To say a word about the boats now, we all had come to the conclusion that the boats and outfit were well devised for the service so far. We had tried them now in various ways; we had sailed against a swift current with a beam wind, where a flat bottom would have had to be towed with lines, and the more this towing could be avoided the better it was on account of the fearful track along the shore. The boats were sufficiently strong for all necessary handling and in case of accident, they were light enough to be brought ashore and turned over for repairs without extra help. More difficult it was to find a good place on the shore where to haul a boat out. The boats were provided with two sails each, a sample of which (sails) I have brought home with me.
We camped next on Tangur island and the following day the 2nd of November, we started to face the Tangur cataract. The wind being very strong in our favor we tried to dodge behind the many islands, but had to give up sailing in many places and get the lines out. We overcame this cataract without much difficulty. Above the cataract it was considered smooth water for about one mile when a very bad stretch was met with about half a mile long. The river here is about quarter of a mile wide, and full of large rocks between which the water came down very "wicked" in channels of about sixty feet wide and some wider. I again ordered each captain to pick his own channel, and having a strong breeze and all oars working we managed to get above. In this place I discovered by experience that what we had found to be the best channel on that day, was the worst a few days after. The water falling six inches to a foot every day, continually changed the rapids, making a bad place better and a good place bad. Above this cataract we had thirteen miles of what we called smooth water with a current of from three to five miles an hour. I had noticed in coming up that the country was inhabited, having seen a few Arabs now and then. We reached the foot of Akaska cataract that evening. On landing, the boat, which carried Lord Avonmore, got stove in when His Lordship took the tools and proved himself quite a carpenter. Here also were seen some useful stretches of beach under cultivation, but these were getting few and far between.