Part 7 (1/2)

33 The Fight at Berbera, 22nd April, 1855

Unable to let well alone, Burton noanted to make a new expedition, this tier and ain at Berbera, taking with him Speke, Stroyan, Herne and 42 assistants, and his first care was to establish an agency on the coast, so as to have the protection of the English gunboat, the ”Mahi,” which had brought theunboat, and this had scarcely been done before Burton and his party were attacked by 300 natives, arht, and tried to entrap and entangle theht then ensued Javelins hissed, war-clubs crashed The forty-two coloured auxiliaries prolishht Burton, who had nothing but a sabre, fought like a demon; Speke, on his left near the entrance of the tent, did deadly execution with a pair of revolvers; Herne on his right emptied into the enemy a sixshooter, and then ha his way towards the sea, was struck by a javelin, which pierced both cheeks, and struck out four of his teeth

Speke received eleven wounds, fro proof, comments Burton, of how difficult it is to kill a man in sound health Eventually the survivors, stained with blood, and fearfully exhausted, but carrying, nevertheless, the corpse of poor Stroyan, htway took them back to Aden [160]

Chapter VIII 9th February 1855-October 1856, The Criraphy:

14 First Footsteps in East Africa, 1856

34 The Criland, and, on his first opportunity, he gave an account of his explorations before the Royal Geographical Society Little, however, was now talked of except the Crimean War, which had commenced, it will be remembered in March 1854

The Allies landed in the Criht on the 5th of Novee of Sebastopol

Burton had not long been hoing areon, about the same time Eht he saw a career ofhim Soon after his arrival at the seat of war he was appointed chief of the staff to General Beatson, and in his ”gorgeous uniforanize and drill his contingent of Bashi+-Bazouks He had great difficulties with Beatson, a brave, but passionate and undiplomatic old warrior; but he succeededfa to an end, and the troops he had drilled so patiently had little to do beside look on At this conjuncture he thought he saw a road to success in the relief of Kars, which had been persistently besieged by the Russians Elated at the prospect of taking part in a great military feat, he hurried to Constantinople, obtained an intervieith the British Ambassador, Lord Stratford, and submitted a plan for approval To his a passion, and called him ”the most impudent man in the Boressed As the as closing, it had been arranged by the Allies that Kars should be allowed to fall as a peace offering to Russia

Burton now began to suffer from the untrue tales that were told about him, still he never troubled to disprove theated scoundrel whose life had been sullied by every species of vice; who not only invented caluave them a verisimilitude Two of this man's misdeeds may be mentioned First he robbed the Post Office at Alexandria, and later he unblushi+ngly unfolded to Lord Stanley of Alderley his plan ofher so, under a Greek law, a large portion of her inco able to do it that Lord Stanley consulted a lady friend, and the two together succeeded in frustrating the infan This sordid and callous rascal tried hard to lead people to suppose that he and Burton were hand and glove in various kinds of devilry, and a favourite phrase in his reat scamps” Percy Smythe [161] then an official under Lord Stratford, co: ”No, that won't do, ---- is a real scamp, but Burton is only wild” One story put abroad apparently by the same scoundrel is still in circulation We are told that Burton was once caught in a Turkish hare the usual indescribable penalty As this was the solitary story that really annoyed Burton, we think it our duty to say that conclusive docu that, whether or not he ever broke into a harem, he most certainly underwent no deprivation

Other slanders of an even lish mothers loathed Burton's naetically In time, it is true, he lived all this down, still he was never--he is not now--generally regarded as a saint worthy of canonization

With the suspension of General Beatson--for the machinations of enemies ultimately accomplished the old hero's fall--Burton's connection with the Crination, he returned to England and arrived here just in time to ain left for Ceylon

Edward's after career was sad enough to draw tears fro an elephant hunt a number of natives set upon him and beat him brutally about the head Brain trouble ensued, and he returned hoe, he lived a life of utter silence Except on one solitary occasion he never after--and that is to say for forty years--uttered a single word Always rese a Greek statue, there was now added to hiid and sole reat, warrief In all his letters he enquires tenderly after his ”dear brother,” and could truly say, with the enemy of his boyhood, Oliver Goldsmith:

”Where'er I roam, whatever realms to see, My heart untravelled fondly turns to thee: Still to land, General Beatson proainst his ene subpoenaed He thoroughly sympathized with Beatson, but he had no wish to be forced to remain in London, just as he had no wish at any tiuised hi a pillow over his stomach to simulate corpulence To one friend who met him, he made himself known ”Are you really Burton?” inquired his friend ”I shall be,”

replied Burton, ”but just now I'm a Greek doctor” Burton's conscience, however, finally had the mastery He did attend the trial and he corroborated the stateainst Beatson, but it was generally felt that the old war dog had fully vindicated his character

35 Engaged to Isabel Arundell, August 1856

In August, after a lapse of four years, Burton renewed acquaintance with Isabel Arundell, who one day met him, quite by accident, in the Botanical Gardens, and she kept ht He had carried his life in his hand to Mecca and to Harar, he had kept at bay 200 Somalis, but like the man in Ca to Lady Burton, [164] it was Burton who made the actual proposal; and it is just possible

”You won't chalk up 'Mother will be angry' now I hope,” said Burton