With Kitchener in the Soudan : a story of Atbara and Omdurman

by G. A. Henty

  '"There are two here,' one of the women said; 'I will go and fetch them.'

  " 'No,' I said; 'who am I that they should come to me? I will go and see them if you will show me where they live.'

  "' Ah, here they come!' she said, as two Dervishes approached. I went up to them, and they said:We hear that you are a hakim who has done great things.'

  '"I am no hakim,' I said; 'I was just coming to you to tell you so. The man I aided was a friend and was not deeply wounded. Having seen a white hakim take bullets from wounded men, I tried my best, and as the bullet was but a short way in I succeeded. If I had had the instruments I saw the infidel use it would have been easy, but I had to make an instrument, which sufficed for the purpose, although it would have been of no use had the bullet gone in deeper.'

  " They came in and examined Saleh's wound, the bullet, and the tool I had made.

  "'It is well,' they said; 'you have profited by what you saw. Whence do you come?'

  " I told the same story that I had told Saleh.

  "You have been some time at Khartoum?'

  " Not very long,' I said; 'but I went down once to Cairo, and was there some years. It was there I came to know something of the ways of the infidels. I am a poor man and very ignorant, but if you will allow me I will act as your assistant, as I know that there are many wounded here. If you will tell me what to do I will follow your instructions carefully.'

  "The two hakims looked more satisfied at finding that I was not a dangerous rival. One said: 'Among the things that have been brought in here is a box. Those who brought it did not know what it contained, and it was too strong for them to open, though of course they were able to hammer it and break it open. It contained nothing but many shining instruments, but the only one that we knew the purport of was a saw. There were two boxes of the same shape, and the other contained a number of little bottles of drugs; and Ave thought that maybe as the boxes were alike, these shining instruments were used by the white hakim.'

  "'I can tell you that if I see them,' I said, and went with them. In a house where booty of all sorts was stored I saw the chests which I knew were those carried by Hicks's medical officer. The one contained drugs, the other a variety of surgical instruments—probes, forceps, amputating knives, and many other instruments of whose use I was ignorant. I picked out three or four probes and forceps of different shapes.

  " 'These are the instruments,' I said, 'with which they take out bullets. With one of these thin instruments they search the wound until they find the ball. Sometimes they cannot find it, and even when they have found it they sometimes cannot get hold of it with any of these tools, which, as you see, open and shut.'

  "What are the knives for?"

  "They use the knives for cutting off limbs. Twice have I seen this done, for I was travelling with a learned hakim who was searching the tombs for relics. In one case a great stone fell on a man's foot and smashed it, and the hakim took it off at the ankle. In another case a man had been badly wounded by a bullet in the arm. He was not one of our party, but hearing of the hakim's skill he had made a journey of three days to him. The wound was very bad, and they said it "was too late to save the arm, so they cut it off above the elbow

  "'And they lived?'

  '"Yes, they both lived.'

  "'Could you do that?'

  "I shook my head. 'It requires much skill,' I said. 'I saw how it was done, but to do it one's self is very different. If there was a man who must die if an arm or a leg were not taken off, I would try to save his life, but I would not try unless it was clear that the man must die if it were not done. But you are learned men, hakims, and if you will take me as your assistant I will show you how the white doctors take out balls, and, if there is no other way, cut off limbs, and when I have once shown you you will do it far better than I.'

  "The two men seemed much pleased. It was evident to them that if they could do these things it would widely add to their reputation, 'It is good,' they said; 'you shall go round with us and see the wounded, and we will see for ourselves what you can do. Will you want this chest carried?'

  "'No,' I said; 'I will take these instruments with me. Should it be necessary to cut off a limb to try and save life, I shall need the knives, the saw, and this instrument, which I heard the white hakim call a tourniquet, and which they use for stopping the flow of blood while they are cutting. There are other instruments, too, that will be required.'

  CHAPTER XVIII

  A HAKIM

  I SUCCEEDED in getting out two more bullets, and then handed the instruments to the hakims, saying that I had shown them all I knew, and would now leave the matter in their hands altogether, or would act as their assistant if they wished it. I had no fear that harm would come of it, for being so frequently engaged in war I knew that they had in a rough way considerable skill in the treatment of wounds. I had impressed upon them while probing the wounds that no force must be used, and that the sole object was to find the exact course the ball had taken. As to the amputations, they would probably not be attempted. A fighting Dervish would rather die than lose a limb, and were he to die under an operation his relatives would accuse the operator of having killed him.

  " I remained at work with them for two or three days. In nearly half the cases they failed to find the course of the ball; but when they did so and the wound was not too deep, they generally succeeded in extracting it. They were highly pleased, and I took great pains to remain well in the background.

  "They were very friendly with me; their fees were mostly horses, or carpets, or other articles, in accordance with the means of the patients, and of these they gave me a portion, together with some money which had been looted from the chests carrying silver for the purchase of provisions and the payment of troops. Although they made a pretence of begging me to remain always with them, I refused, saying that I saw I could no longer be of assistance to them. I could see they were inwardly pleased. They gave me some more money, and I left them, saying that I did not for a moment suppose that I could tell them anything further, but that if at any time they should send for me I would try and recall what I had seen the white hakims do in such a case as they were dealing with.

  " In the meantime Saleh was progressing very favourably, and indeed would have been up and about had I not peremptorily ordered him to remain quiet.You are doing well,' I said; 'why should you risk bringing on inflammation merely for the sake of getting about a few days earlier?'

  "Abdullah was also better but still extremely weak, and I had to order that meat should be boiled for some hours, and that he should drink small quantities of the broth three or four times a day. Many times a day women came to me to ask me to see to their husbands' wounds, and sometimes the wounded men came to me themselves. All the serious cases I referred to the hakims, and confined myself simply to dressing and bandaging wounds which had grown angry for want of attention. I always refused to accept fees, insisting that I was not a hakim, and simply afforded my help as a friend. I had the satisfaction, however, of doing a great deal of good, for in the medicine-chest I found a large supply of plaster and bandages. Frequently mothers brought children to me. These I could have treated with some of the simple drugs in the chest ; but I refused to do so, for I could not have explained in an}^ satisfactory way how I knew one drug from another, or was acquainted with their qualities. Still, although I refused fees I had many little presents of fowls, fruit, pumpkins, and other things. These prevented my feeling that I was a burden upon Saleh, for of course I put them into the general stock.

  " So far, I cannot but look back with deep gratitude for the strange manner in which I have been enabled to avert all suspicion, and even to make myself quite a popular character among the people of El Obeid. One bottle I found in the medicine-chest was a great prize to me. It contained iodine, and with a weak solution of this I was able to maintain my colour. I did not care so much for my face and hands, for I was so darkened by the sun that my complexion was little fairer than that of many of t
he Arabs. But I feared that an accidental display of a portion of my body usually covered by my garments would at once prove that I was a white man. I had used up the stuff that I had brought with me when I escaped from the square, and having no means of procuring fresh stain, was getting uneasy, but this discovery of the iodine put it within my power to renew my colouring whenever it was necessary.

  "About a month later.

  " I have been living here quietly since I last wrote in this journal. The day after I had done so the Emir sent for me and said he had heard that I had taken bullets out of wounds, and had shown the two doctors of the town how to do so by means of instruments found in a chest that was among the loot brought in from the battle-field. I repeated my story to him, as to how I had acquired the knowledge from being in the service of a white hakim from Cairo who was travelling in the desert, and that I had no other medical knowledge except that I had seen in the chest a bottle which contained stuff like that the white doctors used in order to put a patient to sleep, so that they could take off a limb without his feeling pain.

  "I have heard of such things being done by the Turkish hakims at Khartoum, but I did not believe them. It is against all reason.'

  "I have seen it done, my lord,' I said.I do not say that I could take off a limb as they did, but I am sure that the stuff would put anyone to sleep.'

  "I wish you to put it to the trial,' the Emir said.One of my sons came back from the battle with a bullet-hole through his hand. The hakim said that two of the bones were broken. He put bandages round, and my son said no more about it. He is a man who does not complain of slight troubles, but yesterday evening the pain became so great that he was forced to mention it, and when I examined his arm I found that it was greatly swelled. Slaves have been bathing it with cold water ever since, but the pain has increased rather than diminished.'

  "' I will look at it, my lord, but I greatly fear that it is beyond my poor skill to deal with it.'

  " The young man was brought in, and on removing the bandage I saw that the wound was in a terrible state and the arm greatly inflamed some distance up the wrist. It was a bad case, and it seemed to me that unless something was done mortification would speedily set in.

  "The two doctors saw it an hour ago,' the Emir went on, 'and they greatly fear for his life. They told me that they could do nothing, but that as you had seen the white hakim do wonderful things you might be able to do something.'

  "My lord,' I said, 'it is one thing to watch an operation, but quite another to perform it yourself. I think, as the doctors have told you, your son's life is in great danger, and I do believe that if there were white doctors here to take off his arm he might be saved, but I could not undertake it. The skill to do so is only acquired by long years of study. How can I, a poor man, know how to do such things'? Were I to attempt and fail, what would you say?—that I had killed your son, and that but for me he might have recovered.'

  "'He will not recover,' the Emir said moodily. 'What say you, Abu? You have heard what this man says; what do you think?'

  "I think, Father, that it were well to try. This man has used his eyes so well that he has taken the white man's instruments and drawn out bullets from wounds. I feel as if this wound will kill me; therefore, if the man fails I shall be none the worse. Indeed, it would be better to die at once than to feel this fire burning till it burns me up.'

  "You hear what my son says ? I am of the same opinion. Do your best. Should you fail, I swear by the head of the Prophet that no harm shall come to you.'

  " The wounded man was a fine young fellow of three or four and twenty.

  "' If it is my lord's will, I will try,' I said; 'but I pray you to bear in mind that I do so at your command, and without much hope of accomplishing it successfully. It would, I think, be advisable that the limb should be taken off above the elbow, so that it will be above the spot to which the inflammation has extended.'

  " The Emir looked at his son, who said:It matters not, Father, 'tis but my left arm, and I shall still have my right to hurl a spear or wield a sword.'

  " I need not tell how I got through the operation. Everything required for it—the inhaler, sponges, straight and crooked needles, and thread—was in the chest. The young Arab objected to be sent to sleep. He said it might be well for cowards, but not for a fighting man. I had to assure him that it was not for his sake but for my own that I wished him to go to sleep, and that if I knew he was not suffering pain I might be able to do the thing without my hand trembling; but that if I knew he was suffering I should be flurried. I insisted that the hakims should be sent for. When they came I called them to witness that, at the Emir's command, I was going to try to do the operation I had seen the white doctor perform, although I was but an ignorant man and feared greatly that I might fail.

  " I really was desperately nervous, though at the same time I did feel that having seen the operation performed two or three times, and as it was a simple one, I ought to be able to do it. Of course I had everything laid handy. The tourniquet was first put on the arm and screwed tightly. Then I administered the chloroform, which took its effect speedily. My nerves were braced up now, and I do think I made a fair job of it—finding and tying up the arteries, cutting and sawing the bone off, and making a flap; a few stitches to keep this together and it was done, and to my relief the Arab, who had lain as rigid as a statue, winced a little when the last stitch was put in. This was the point on which I had been most anxious. I was not sure whether the amount of chloroform he had inhaled might not have been too strong for him.

  "' Do not try to move,' I said, as he opened his eyes and looked round, as if trying to remember where he was.

  " As his eyes fell upon me he said,When are you going to begin?'

  "I have finished,' I said,but you must lie quiet for some time; the slightest movement now might cause the flow of blood to burst out.'

  "The Emir had stood staring at his son's quiet face, as if amazed beyond the power of speech. Four Dervishes had held the patient's limbs so as to prevent any accidental movement. A female slave had held a large basin of warm water, and another handed me the things I pointed to. I had begged the hakims to keep their attention fixed on what I was doing, in order that these also might see how the white doctor did such things. When his son spoke the Emir gave a gasp of relief.He lives,' he murmured, as if even now he could scarcely believe that this was possible, and as he put his hand upon my shoulder it trembled with emotion.Truly the ways of the white infidels are marvellous. Abu, my son, Allah ha: been merciful! He must have meant that you should not die, and thus have sent this man, who has seen the white hakims at work, to save your life! What is to be done now?' he went on, turning to me.

  "'He should be raised very gently, and clothes put under his shoulder and head; then he should be carried on the angareb to the coolest place in the house. He may drink a little juice of fruit, but he had best eat nothing. The great thing is to prevent fever coming on. With your permission I will stay with him, for if one of the threads you saw me tie round these little white tubes in the arm should slip or give way, he would be dead in five minutes, unless this machine round the arm is tightened at once and the tube that carries the blood is tied up. It would be well that he should have a slave to fan him. I hope he will sleep.'

  "The Emir gave orders for the bed to be carried to the room adjoining his harem.

  "His mother and his young wife will want to see him,' he said to me,and when the danger that you speak of is past, the women will care for him. You will be master in the room, and will give such orders as you please.'

  " Then he turned off and walked hastily away. I could see that he had spoken with difficulty, and that, in spite of his efforts to appear composed and tranquil, his mouth was twitching and his eyes moist.

  "As soon as the bed had been placed by my directions near the open window, the four Dervishes left the room. The hakims were on the point of doing so, when I said:

  " I will stay here for a few minutes, and
will then come out and talk this matter over with you. I have been fortunate

  indeed in remembering so well what I saw. I heard a white hakim explain how he did each thing, and why, to the sheik of the wounded man's party, and I will tell you what I remember of it, and you, with your wisdom in these matters, will be able to do it far better than I.'

  " When they had retired, the door leading into the harem opened, and a woman, slightly veiled, followed by a younger woman and two slave girls, came in. I stopped her as she was hurrying towards her son.

  "Lady,' I said,I pray you to speak very quietly, and in few words. It is most important that he should not be excited in any way, but should be kept perfectly quiet for the next two or three days.'

  " 'I will do so,' she said. 'May I touch him?'

  "You may take his hand in yours, but do not let him move. I will leave you with him for a few minutes. Please remember that everything depends upon his not being agitated.'

  " I went out and joined the hakims.

  "' Truly, Mudil, Allah has given you strange gifts,' one of them said. 'Wonderful is it that you should have remembered so well what you saw, and more wonderful still is it that you should have the firmness to cut and saw flesh and bone as if they were those of a dead sheep, with the Emir standing by to look at you!'

  "I knew that his life, and perhaps mine, depended upon it. The Emir would have kept his oath I doubt not, but when it became known in the town that Abu, who is known to all for his bravery and goodness, died in my hands, it would not have been safe for me to leave this house.'

  "I then explained the reason for each step that I took. They listened most attentively, and asked several questions, showing that they were intensely interested, and most anxious to be able to perform so wonderful an operation themselves. They were greatly surprised at the fact that so little blood flowed.

  "'It seems,' I said, 'from what I heard the white hakim say, that the blood flowed through those little white tubes. By twisting the tourniquet very tight that flow of blood is stopped. The great thing is to find those little tubes, and tie them up. As you would notice, the large ones in the inside of the arm could be seen quite plainly. When they cannot be seen, the screw is unloosed so as to allow a small quantity of blood to flow, which shows you where the tubes are. You will remember that I took hold of each with the bent point of a small wire or a pair of these nippers, and, while you held it, tied the thread tightly round it. When that is done, one is ready to cut the bone. You saw me push the flesh back so as to cut the bone as high up as possible; that is because the white doctor said the flesh would shrink up and the bone would project. I cut the flesh straight on one side, and on the other with a flap that will, when it is stitched, cover over the bone and the rest of the flesh, and make what the hakim called a pad. He said all cutting-off of limbs was done in this way, but of course the tubes would not lie in the same place, and the cutting would have to be made differently; but it was all the same system. He called these simple operations, and said that anyone with a firm hand and a knowledge of where these tubes lie ought to be able to do it after seeing it done once or twice. He said, of course, it would not b& so neatly done as by men who had been trained to it, but that in cases of extreme necessity anyone who had seen it done once or twice, and had sufficient nerve, could do it, especially if they had ready at hand this stuff that makes the wounded man sleep and feel no pain. I listened very attentively, because all seemed to me almost like magic, but I certainly did not think that I should ever have to do such a thing myself.'