A great deal is often talked of the evils of military government, and, of course, there comes a time when military methods are out of place. But I doubt very much if any set of civilians could have done so well with a country like the Soudan as the soldiers have. Whatever may be the soldier’s fault, what he is told to do, that he will set to work to do, and very likely he will carry it through successfully, however little training he may have had, where a cleverer man might be dismayed by difficulties. In fact, the government is military because it is mainly carried on by soldiers (there was no one else to do it), but it is run on civilian lines. Spend a morning in the office of a Mudir or Governor of a province, and you will go away with an enhanced opinion of the powers of a British officer.

First of all, you will find him talking fluent, if not always perfect, Arabic, that most difficult of tongues. An interpreter is present in case of an emergency, but he is seldom appealed to. In turn, a bewildering variety of subjects is dealt with. A criminal trial has to be steered through one of its stages. Next, two sets of villagers come in with a petition as to a dispute of land-ownership. In a land which has seen such vicissitudes as the Soudan, questions of title are numerous and difficult in the extreme; within the last twenty years the same plot of land may have had several sets of bonâ fide occupiers, and finally none. The two parties come in scowling fiercely at each other (they have probably had a fight already on the land in question), and squat down on the floor, while their spokesmen step forward to tell their tale. The Mudir is addressed as the Protector of the Poor, the Shield from Oppression, and a number of other names. When the matter is disposed of, after a great deal of hard swearing on both sides, everybody who has anything to do with it attempts to give his version simultaneously, and finally the whole crowd has to be thrust out separately by the police, still talking as they go.

Then comes a succession of applicants with other grievances and petitions—Greeks alleging some breach of contract, Arab land-owners demanding remission of taxation or loans for a sakieh, or for sowing seeds. Next the plan of a house has to be examined, the quality of certain bricks to be looked into, an auction of river-fisheries to be held, or a contract about a Government ferry adjusted. Then there are questions concerning drains or wells, pumps or police, licenses for boats or liquor, and a thousand and one other questions of administration. Finally, there is correspondence with headquarters, to adjust some financial, legal, or educational matter. It is no use being a Mudir, or, indeed, any other official, under the Soudan Government, unless you are prepared to work like a horse, and deal fearlessly with nearly every department of human life.

CHAPTER XVIII
JUSTICE AND SLAVERY

There is no Magna Charta in the Soudan. It is expressly laid down in the Anglo-Egyptian Agreement of 1899 that the country is to be governed under Martial Law, and all legislative power resides in the Governor-General, subject to the approval of H.M.’s representative in Egypt. But Martial Law is a vague and unsatisfactory term. During the recent operations in the Transvaal a flying column was sent to occupy a railway terminus and to secure the rolling-stock therein. The seizure was successfully accomplished, but when the engines were examined they were all found to be defective in certain essential parts of the mechanism. The commander of the column sent for the railway officials and ordered them to restore the missing pieces. In vain they protested that they knew nothing of them. The soldier, an Australian, was a man of few words. ‘I shall shoot you in the morning,’ said he, ‘unless the pieces are found.’ They objected that such a course was utterly illegal, even under Martial Law. ‘My view of Martial Law,’ he replied, ‘is that you must do what I tell you or take the consequences. In any case, discussion is useless. The shooting-party is ordered at eight.’ The engines were complete in every particular long before the fatal hour; but such methods, though sometimes necessary in war, are not suitable to peaceful administration. Martial Law remains a power in the background, but the Government lost no time in setting up a system of Civil Justice, and one of its earliest acts was to appoint a properly qualified Legal Adviser.

It is fortunate that English barristers are accustomed to give advice on a great variety of matters. The Legal Adviser, especially at first, when he acted temporarily as Director of Education, had very multifarious duties. He was at that time the only judge in the country, and, besides strictly legal matters, had to assist in drafting regulations relating to customs and commerce, game, travellers, and many other subjects. But his chief occupation was the preparation of penal and civil codes. With one exception, which will presently be noticed, there was no existing foundation to build upon. Under the old Egyptian rule the criminal law supposed to be administered was the Khanoon Humayoun, a Turkish code dating from 1837, but this was perfectly unsuitable for use by a civilized Power. It was wisely decided to make use of Indian and Colonial experience. A penal code and code of criminal procedure were promulgated as soon as possible, founded on the Indian codes, modified to suit the simpler requirements of the Soudan, and made to resemble courts-martial in their procedure to facilitate their working by soldiers. This was followed by a civil ordinance, likewise adapted from the Indian Civil Procedure Code, as used in Burma and British Bechuanaland. By the end of 1901 a system of civil justice was at work in all the provinces except Kordofan, Fashoda, and the Bahr el Ghazal. It has since been extended to Kordofan, and even in the Bahr el Ghazal and Fashoda a beginning has been made.

In each province the inferior police-court work is done by the Egyptian mamurs, who exercise summary jurisdiction on a small scale. All the more important cases are heard by the Mudir, inspectors and sub-inspectors, who form various courts of differing strength according to the nature of the trial. Besides the Legal Adviser there have also been appointed three English judges, all trained English barristers. Their headquarters are at Khartoum, where they form the superior court and court of appeal, and they also travel on circuit in the provinces, either to relieve a particular pressure of work or to avoid the trouble and expense of bringing up cases to Khartoum. At present, of course, any very definite or precise division of duties among the different members of the judiciary is impossible. The ordinary judicial business has been immensely added to by the work of Land Commissions, and every available person has had to be pressed into the service. Naturally, after twenty years of anarchy, of emigrations and immigrations, and of general unsettlement, the ownership of the land is a matter of the greatest possible doubt and confusion, and endless disputes arise. In the early part of 1903 one of the English judges was sitting in Dongola Province on a Land Commission. His preliminary list alone contained 400 cases; and Dongola is by no means the most contentious province. But this work will now soon be completed, and a more complete organization of the courts will be possible.

Meanwhile the criminal law has been very well administered, and, if the complete inexperience in such matters of the British officers who have had to act as judges in the provinces is taken into account, the administration of the civil law has also been most creditable. Mistakes are made, of course, but substantial justice has been done. Confidence in the tribunals, as well as the need for them, is growing rapidly. The fact that the amount of work done in the civil courts in 1902 was exactly double what it was in 1901 is striking testimony to the growing belief in their impartiality.

The only department in which the whole system had not to be built up again from the bottom was the administration of the Mekhemeh Sharia, the courts dealing with the sacred Mohammedan law. Just as in our own country the ecclesiastical courts formerly dealt with all questions relating to wills or marriages according to the canon law, so these courts administer the sacred law in all matters relating to succession, marriage, personal status, and charitable endowments. Once they covered the whole field, but as the sacred law was unchanging, or nearly so, other codes had to be introduced to suit changing conditions, and their action was gradually restricted to the subjects mentioned. In the old Soudan nearly every place of any pretensions had one of these courts presided over by a Cadi, and they doubtless dealt with many matters outside the limit, for civil cases could be tried by the Cadi, if both parties were agreed. The Cadi was frequently paid a very small salary, or none at all, and was expected to make his living out of court-fees and the presents he received, a system by no means conducive to strict justice. Now these courts are much fewer in number than formerly, but each Cadi receives a regular salary, and all the fees go to the Government. All the Cadis are under the direct supervision of the Grand Cadi or Cadi of Cadis, assisted by a Mohammedan inspector. It was very difficult at first to find properly qualified occupants for these posts. Among native-born Soudanese there were practically none, and the supply had to come from Egypt. If they were honest, it was at any rate something to be thankful for. But in days to come, especially when the Training College at Khartoum has been more developed, it may be hoped that they will be not only honest, but also capable, and that they will also possess a sound knowledge of the law which they have to administer. It is worthy of note that a Soudanese Cadi has been appointed at El Obeid.